Year 21, Week 19, Day One (week 1113)
(January 17, 2000 was my first carving day.)
06-05-21 Saturday
Mom and I went to the yard on the other side of her and the neighbor’s fence and cut branching of a Schefflera tree that was leaning against her fence. This tree is actually not on the property of the people behind us. The fences are inside the property and the tree is right on the corner.
I used the saws-all. There is little I would want to use a chain saw for. The saws-all is so much nicer. It is easier to control and since the blades are narrow, you can get them into tighter places. They are safer as you don’t have the spinning chain on the back of the blade. They are limited on their reach, which most chain saws exceed, but I don’t deal with that sized stuff as much.
I did start with a dull blade but had a couple other blades on me and one was sharp enough to do the job. Mom may have to pay to have the tree taken out. It is growing like a weed and sending up trunks like mad. There was a cactus there that mom wanted cut. It also grows like a weed. She thought she had eliminated them but they came up. I happen to have some of the same ones growing in my condo in pots. They are survivors. I have no idea how they have survived as long as they have.
I pounded on another nail. Nails are usually cut from four sides to create a point. I used the point of the nail as a starting point of the sword, turning it so it formed a nice angled point of the sword and that was where I started flattening it. It is about half again as wide as the original nail, and about half again as long. I have not tried to add the edge, just flattening it evenly. I am not sure if I want to grind it into shape or keep pounding it, hoping I can shape it right. I have some figuring out on how to do certain shaping on it at this small scale. If I really wanted to, I could make the tools to do this right.
The thought crossed my mind to carve some squirrels to hold these swords, and possibly shields. I will consider it.
A friend baked a birthday cake for me. It was chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting. She added semi sweet chocolate morsels between the cakes and on top. It was good. We decided not to put candles on it because last time we used the right number of candles, the heat kept driving us back. Once we finally got the fire out, the cake was charcoal. Don’t want to make that mistake again.
I had gotten a new mattress last month, along with sheets and pillows. A spring mattress was not in my budget so this was a foam mattress. I also got some things for mom and a friend.
The mattress is pretty good, the sheets are great (my friend loves hers), the pillows are all right (mom loves her soft ones, I have only used the mediums so far). I also got some slippers They have to be worn a while to break them in. It is supposed to be a size 13 slipper but feels smaller. I am glad I don’t have to buy more. Other than the slippers, I would say all that I got were worth it.
Year 21, Week 19, Day One (week 1113)
(January 17, 2000 was my first carving day.)
06-06-21 Sunday
My brother and I talked about videos we watched. He was telling me that all he knew about condensation in the attic on air conditioning vents was all wrong. He saw a video that explained things like he never heard before. As the attic at night cools down, it cannot hold as much moisture. Moving air in the attic causes more condensation on the conduit than still air, and a smooth, shiny surface collects drops more than a rough surface. It happens that he has been doing it mostly right. He said that those in attic reflecting sheets makes things worse. Also, he said that any time he sees duct work where it is sitting on the wood, there is mold and fungus on the wood as the wood stays dry.
Friday, my watch caught on something at work and the pin came out and landed on my chair. I watched it roll behind the seat. There is a metal backing right there, I could feel the end of the pin but could not get hold of it. Yesterday, I handed the watch to mom. She worked on it for over an hour, with no luck. I walked into her house and said something. She said that the instant it heard my voice, the pin slipped into place.
When working wood, there are times we need to taper something. Sometimes the easiest way to do this is to put it to the saw and cut a wedge. Usually, though, the best way it so shave it. You start at the end and shave off a tiny bit off the end. Then you back up slightly and shave some more to the end. Then back up a little more and shave to the end again Each shaving removes more of what you already cut. As you work back, you will find that the cut surface is on an angle from the original point. If you need a sharper angle, you can start the process again, taking a shaving off the end and keep backing up. Whether carving or turning, this works great.
I need to be more productive than I am. I do what I can. I see that I look at how long it is till Christmas and my mind says I have a lot of time. I really need to get the pieces that I have started, finished. I am thinking of adding flags on poles sticking out the barrel of my cannons. I have to design the flags, print them out, give them a number of coats of varnish, and then attach them to the poles. I have some beads to put on the end of the poles. I am thinking of having BOOM on one side of the flag, and Merry Xmas on the other side. I could have boom on both sides but will decide that at the time. The cannons also need to be decorated, and as soon as I get the vehicles finished on the carving part, get them decorated too.
I will see what I do next week.
1000
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