Long Days Leading Into Vacation

I have ten hour days every day this week, then my week of vacation next week.  I don't terribly mind the mandated overtime, but the timing could be better for me.  My mind is crispy and my back has been very bothersome recently with overall fatigue building.  My backache is troubling because I have plans for my week off and do not want to be laid up and unable to accomplish anything with my precious time off. 

My main project is to build and install a compost bin in the back corner of the yard near the garden.  These are my ideas written down, as planned out on paper as it will get.  Whether it turns out as planned is yet to be seen.

My premise is that I will be able to insert hardware cloth into a rip cut in the wood and nail it in.  I'm also considering a sealant to keep water out of that groove.  If this doesn't work out then I do have a backup plan.  I just really hope I can get this to work easily.  I plan on building it in the garage in sections that I will assemble in the yard.  Any thoughts?  Good advice welcomed only.  ;-)

Happy Fourth of July, Andy Griffith

Happy Fourth of July everyone, tomorrow anyway.  I disappointed my wife by not wanting to go out with friends for a small party and to watch some fireworks.  I'm just exhausted and have started some complex training for a new task at work this week leaving my mind even more tired.  Yes, tomorrow is a day off but there are things I still want to get done despite the 100 degree temps expected and still hopefully have at least half of a restful day.

On a sadder note, I just found out that Andy Griffith passed away.  I like a lot of what he did, including the Andy Griffith Show, No Time For Sergeants and the following obscure video for Vitajex.  Rest in peace, Andy Griffith.




[Edit] I almost forgot about the little known show, Salvage 1, where Griffith is a junk yard owner that builds a spaceship to salvage valuable junk left on the moon by astronauts.  I loved that show as a kid and haven't seen an episode since.  I think I'll go check Youtube right now!...

The Sky Is Falling

But only just a bit.  As I got home from work today I saw something I haven't seen in a long, long time.  Rain.  Of course, it lasted only about 10 minutes and the sun was shining the whole time, so it was just enough to push the humidity through the roof.  It will all evaporate in these temperatures (over 90F every day this week and pushing 100F tomorrow) so I'm sure we'll still have to water the garden tonight.

Speaking of the garden, I'm due for an end/beginning of the month update over at my garden blog.  You can look for that either later tonight or tomorrow evening.  TTYL

The Kittens, Basil and Hamish

When we got these kittens they were less than two pounds each, that was three weeks ago.  They are now 9 weeks old and have grown quite a bit in that time.  Since the internet is a series of tubes, and those tubes are filled with cats, a few more cute kitty pics can't hurt.


Basil, left, is still a bit bigger, he has white arms and color on either side of his nose.  Hamish has 'sleeves' of color down to his elbows and more white in the face.


Much, much more after the break!

Kittens and Power Tools

I've been lazy about blogging lately.  Kind of odd, now that I'm getting more hits than ever.  All I can say is that I'm always tired now.  I still love my job, everything is great at home, I'm just fatigued.  Probably a lot of it is psychological now that I know my week of long overdue vacation is only weeks away.

Other than that, it has been a normal week for us routine-wise.  The kittens have been adorable, they are 8 weeks old this weekend.  On Tuesday they go in for the bad thing, but they may calm down after that and we won't have to deal with that smell ever.  They are getting bolder and went into the basement for the first time earlier this week, prompting a quick, thorough sweeping and cleaning of the floors and cobwebs.  Now they can go down there all they want, after all, that is where we want the litter box to ultimately be.  Warning, I have been trying to take some more pics for the inevitable cute kitten post soon.

Yesterday I skipped an in-laws get-together and reorganized the corner of the garage that holds the yard and garden tools.  Everything is up off the floor now, on hooks and such, making room to store my new toy.  I bought a table saw yesterday morning to help me in my various projects, including the compost bin I want to build soon.  So after cleaning up the corner of the garage I assembled the table saw and stand.  It is a very inexpensive one, 130 dollars, but I can't justify spending hundreds of dollars on a tool I will only use for maybe a couple projects a year.  After that and a bit of yard work I tired so I retired into the house for the evening.  Soon I will review the whole manual and play with it a bit to feel it out.

...When I'm not so tired. ;-|

Friends, Fathers and Maybe A Nap

We had a very nice small gathering of good friends last night for food, drinks and a fire.  It is nice to do, but preparation is an all day affair.  Yes, my wife does most of it, but it still occupies our whole day.  I'll feel better about it after I get to take a vacation, if I don't drop dead first.

I didn't take many pictures so I missed half the people and got none around the fire.  But look!  I got a picture of Zubin (far right) acting natural instead of avoiding the camera!

Today is Father's Day so my wife's dad came over this afternoon and we grilled out a tenderloin.  After last night I am exhausted so thankfully not much was asked of me.  I added a bunch of music to my itunes, posted over at my garden blog (link on the right) and now here to get caught up on everything.  Now the only question is if I nap or not.  TTYL