I am trying to give the 80's back the master bathroom. It has been a long progression.
So today we go at the really crappy light fixture over the mirror.
Then we find this:
Thanks contractors! The box is off center and the amazing thing was the fixture was NOT rated for a damp location! On top of that the ground wire was stuffed in the box. I had to grab some sandpaper to clean it up before I installed the new fixture. Sigh.. It's not exactly this old house and it was built in 86 but still.....
Anyone remember this Pistol? I of course needed some holsters for it. Where do I turn? Why Mr. Hast of course! He does amazing stuff. When I transitioned from a traditional Colt Combat Commander 1911 into the "plastic 9mm bullet hose" (thanks Tam for that terminology) I thought the least I could do as an old dinosaur was to put it in leather.
Michael did not disappoint! Even worked around the CT Lightguard on the thing.
Now? Early pic from him. He is not finished but check this out.
So Mr. and Mrs. Curmudgeon make a rare visit to stately manor today. They bring gifts:
.40 S&W because I love my S&W Model 4006 from a dear elderly Gentleman friend in the mountains of north west North Carolina and .38 Special because, .38 special. There is a gift bag here as well, and I don't know what's in it yet.
Back in the day Mr. Curmudgeon was a painter, Coating Application specialist field superintendent. He brought this:
Goal? Paint the popcorn ceilings in the bathrooms and start on the walls. The paint on the walls is pretty beat up, and in his opinion its because before I bought the house, the owners has everything sprayed then came back with a roller on really cut down paint.
I trust his opinion. From Chicago doing lead abatement on the El train bridges, Kings Bay Submarine Base in Ga., to Coors in Bolder Co., to several Nuclear power plants and almost everything in between, he has BTDT. Plus I have this:
A camera that was inside the torus assembly below a reactor. If you can get 110 film now you need to watch out as the camera now develops its own film if you leave it in! =)
In the meantime, Mrs. Curmudgeon is attacking the front porch with abandon. She left it in such good condition that the Virgin Mary would be proud to sit on it!
The bathroom? The ceilings came out great. Trial coat of "polished silver" on one wall. The color really did not come out on the pic. I think its because of the mirror. I think it looks great!
They will be back in a day or two. Good to have them here even though I had to work.
Waiting on me today in the mailbox was an envelope. I retrieved it after going to work to fix something else that went Tango Uniform. I have been running around that place since Memorial Day weekend plugging holes in the dike.
I was not able to get home to see my Father yesterday. They were without power for a couple of days but the gift he gave me instead of I giving him one was profound.
I had a scheduled Concealed Carry Handgun Class yesterday. I had twelve students. These classes are always scheduled for the third weekend of the month. Happenstance meant this class ran on Fathers Day. I called him as soon as I got home from class. He wanted to know how many students and how the class went first and foremost. We talked about all the Handguns I observed in class. He seems to enjoy that greatly as do I.
So on the day I am supposed to pay honor to him I am channeling the gifts he gave me so long ago about running a Firearm.
It used to be a right of passage of manhood to transition from a BB gun to a .22, to a .410 shotgun, to a rifle in this Country under the watchful eye and tutelage of your Father.
Observing my classes not so much anymore. I have come to the conclusion as I this week will turn another year older on the wrong side of 50, if people show up in class, I will try to instill everything I have learned from so long ago merged with things I continue to learn about running a Firearm to them.
I'm trying to get him a special gift from the Blue Dome in Connecticut. It's difficult though.
Thanks Pop!
Oh, this is a Smith and Wesson .32 long revolver. It is as old as I am. Love the little thing!
Unfortunately, my parents did not. Here is a awesome pic from my friend from RJR Drive of the storm there two hours travel north from here.
It blocked both roads to my parents house with downed trees, no power, no landline telephone. 60K without power. The landlines gone tell me that poles are down. Here? Well we came out ok, but time to pay attention to stuff. Its that time of year.
This is pretty much a pretty looking sealed lead acid battery that can charge phones and jump start cars. It was due for the 3 month maintenance charge.
Large old school Maglite. New batteries! And yes if you sent in enough coupons from Winston cigarette packs you could get one too! Me? Well I was handed one.
Charge the wall safe. Although not the primary goto thing in the event things go pear shaped here it does play an important role on where I go and grab what. I have defined lines of fire to assure that if I miss I will not put a hole in a neighbor.
So on to this:
Lantern and another MagLight. Change the batteries and charge the one for the lantern.
It did not work. Yes, I still have a land line for security system comms and the wimpy VOIP thingy simply does not have enough ringing voltage to run stuff like this.
Yeah, I could build something and it may get to that. This line never rings as it is unlisted and non-published. Yet it did get a robo call tonight.
My friend OldNFO put up an excellent post. Your comms are not secure. They never were. Signalling System 7 has been around a LONG time. Land lines are not secure. Anything you throw out here on the DARPA project known as the Internet, your cell phone, your land line is all up for grabs. Hell, I think FoMoCo and Sirius XM know where the new car is at.
Try this one out. The USPS self serve kiosks used to simply dispense books of stamps. They now thermal print these on demand:
Yep there is a camera on the thing and it knows you as you can only use a Debit or Credit card. I'm betting the barcode links the transaction info to you complete with a picture.
Brave new world indeed. I cry for what the Republic has become. Not so much for the excess of power wielded by some but people that simply do not care. Bread and Circuses indeed.
So a network bridge card went Tango Uniform Memorial Day weekend at work. That killed the communications between two operator workstations to a Programmable Logic Controller. Not just any controller, the one that runs our waste treatment process. So I deftly replace that card with a spare. Its brand spanking new! What could go wrong? Factory sealed. Since 1995.
I ran into the "Bathtub Failure Curve". Here it is:
The "New" card fell out. I ran into the Early "Infant Mortality" Failure. Card is now made of unobtanium.
I work at a chemical plant and the beaker people up front are really good at making oil and water stick together. This thing tries to undo the work they did before we discharge to the public sewer system. So now its like getting into a perfectly functional car but there is no dashboard and no ignition switch.
So, with little options left we went old school.
Drag a PC out to it with the programming software on it. Direct connection to the processor and force or enter variables to run the thing. Some logic is in the operator workstations so its the equivalent of having a Lobotomy to a degree. It will run for a while without the higher logic but its running. That's the main thing.
The Smithsonian called and wants the Reliance Electric AutoMax DCS when we are done with it though. So there is that, LOL! I hate it though. This thing has been so reliable over the years. I doubt whatever I put in next will hold up 20 years.
And that is why Blogging has been light. I hope to get to the range and provide more shooty goodness posts soon. I think however I will be busy with ripping this stuff out soon!
Just got an e-mail from Kentucky Gun Co. I have done a lot of business with them and they just don't send e-mails out.
"One week ago today, on Saturday, May 25, 2013 one of our local officers was shot and killed in the line of duty. Officer Jason Ellis was seven year veteran and K9 officer for the Bardstown Police Dept. Officer
Jason Ellis was not only a patron and friend of KYGUNCO, but also
responded to most of KYGUNCO's late night alarm calls. Officer Ellis was an outgoing officer in our community, and was an active coach in local youth sports.Ellis is the first Bardstown police officer shot and killed in the line of duty in the department's history. Officer Jason Ellis leaves behind a wife and two young sons."
Link for the raffle of a Deluxe Henry Golden Boy for the family of Officer Jason Ellis is here.
I hope they find the scum that did this and leave them in a small room with Officer Ellis' Partner Figo.
