We’re considering cutting our television cable. We feel like we bought the buffet ticket, but are only eating the soup and salad. We tasted the other morsels, and we enjoyed being free to do so, except that it wasn’t free. I posted our intentions online and received a flurry of encouraging and instructional responses. It […]
A Different Drummer: Farewell misery, hello happiness (Part 4)
At last, I get to chronicle the happy leg of our harrowing journey. It’s hard to believe the whole driving trip of 1,124 miles lasted only three nights and four days. It seemed like a month. After two nightmarish border crossings and a sleepless night in Montreal, we were entering Vermont and headed toward our […]
A Different Drummer: Cranky people, then joy (Part 3)
“Bonjour,” said the landlady of our miserable Montreal AirBnB standing at our back door. Patricia had emailed her to complain about the torn up streets, dawn construction noise, barking dogs, broken doors, and terrible parking. We didn’t mention the rancid wine and coffee dregs she’d gifted us. She was not apologetic. She said we should […]
A Different Drummer: The Montreal underground (Part 2)
Susan, Patricia, Gino and I were driving to Montreal in his Tundra on holiday. We had rented a downtown flat on AirBnB. From the pictures, it was a beautiful place, tidy, clean, nestled on a quiet residential tree-lined street, a few blocks from interesting nightlife destinations. Wrong. The homeowner did not update her web photos […]
A Different Drummer: Long day’s journey into night (Part 1)
Hope you’re ready for this four-part misadventure. We weren’t. But as they say, that which does not destroy us… First, thank you all for tolerating my two-week rant on woodworking blunders. During that time, I was on the road, away from a keyboard. I’m back now in one piece and somewhat ready to relive our […]
A Different Drummer: More on moron wood
My continued list of screw ups while learning woodworking. When applying epoxy, when you need to pee, remember not to walk across your garage floor because the bottoms of your feet have been standing in wet epoxy. And most of all, do not go into your house and down the hall to the bathroom. You’ll […]
A Different Drummer: Moron wood
Ready for another woodworking two-parter? It’s esoteric. I hope it translates. I kept a list of every woodworking screw up I made while applying epoxy resin to a redwood slab. Epoxy is thick liquid plastic that is poured on, not brushed on. My list was going to be for personal use. Why expose my mistakes? […]
A Different Drummer: Pinfest Zinfest combined Part 2
I left this story last week with me in a bathtub in Lodi. I was alone. My back was sore. And I was tipsy. That was when, and likely why, I made another bad decision. My bath water was growing cool. It was time for another blast of hot water. I could have just turned […]
A Different Drummer: Pinfest Zinfest combined
Every May I ditch my wife and run off to Dixon alone for three days to play pinball machines. Not this year. She came with me this time. Why? Did she develop a sudden interest in playing pinball? Nope. I have yet to see her play a single game. Here’s why. The Pin-A-Go-Go pinball festival […]
A Different Drummer: My brain on grain
My interest in wood finishes and overall preservation has grown and deserves a second episode. I guess this is what happens to a retired mind with free time. I latch onto a new interest, and I have the opportunity to dig deep and then torture you with it because writing helps me learn. I bought […]