What did you do today

[bdosborn]

We just got back from a Harvest Host road-trip to Colorado western slope winerys and distilleries. We camped for free one night outside of Telluride in a NFS campground using the Lifetime Senior Discount Pass. There is a free gondola about 5 miles from the campground that took us into downtown Telluride for the afternoon. What a deal!


Bruce

[Tom&Shelly]

This morning I weed-wacked the bushes growing up in the driveway, and then I brought Shelly a clump of wild flowers. She called it a boo-kay and put it in one of those purty glass jars she has



I tried to weed-wack last week with our 18 volt Ryobi, but it couldn't hack it--er, wack it. Then, this weekend we were at a garage sale and saw a 56 volt Worx. They said it was owned by a little old lady who only used it once and decided it was too much for her. After a half hour I believe that part, my left arm still hasn't recovered. The battery only lasted about a half hour though, so I'm not sure how new it is. Maybe that's all it's supposed to last?

Anyway, we have tough weeds up here in the East Mountains! But they sure is purty this time of year!

Tom

[edgeau]

Came in from water skiing and my Nephew had chopped the wood, set and lit the camp fire. Now the kids are prepping dinner. Life is good

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[edgeau]

We are camping with extended family. 1 teardrop, 1 swag, 2 tents, 3 caravans and the 12 seat ski / wakeboard boat. 3 of the kids have birthdays within a week. They got inflatable stand up paddle boards to add to the collection - more fun.


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[edgeau]

Some of the crew were waiting at the boat ramp to be picked up by the early risers for round two when a koala climbed down from a tree and had a drink then went back up. This is really unusual to see as they rarely drink. They usually get all they need from the gum leaves. Pity no one had a camera on them. I went by back to take a snap of it in the tree for you.

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[pchast]

looks like a great time was had by all..
Thanks for the pictures.

[Tom&Shelly]

Bought four shop vacs at an estate sale Friday. One of them had a 3 inch hole drilled in its bucket. I'm not sure why either.

Today I cleaned them up and found a 3 inch cap at Home depot for 72 cents. First time in a long time I paid less than a dollar at a hardware store. A little adjustment with a half round file and it fit perfectly



Oh, why do I need four shop vacs? I don't. We currently have 16. Several for general cleaning in the shop, and the rest dedicated (or will be) to tools that have vacuum hose attachments. Sixten stinken shop vacs and no two alike!



Did I mention we get them at estate sales and thrift stores? When the hose is missing it costs more for a replacement. Much, much less than a central shop dust extraction system though. Once a year I clean them out and dump the sawdust in the woods to make a new tree.

BTW, and FWIW, I have yet to find one with a bad motor. Everything else can be fixed, and usually all it needs is a good cleaning and a new set of filters.

Tom

[Tom&Shelly]

Today I made some flashing lights to deter the rodents in our Tundra and Jeep.



Mostly made from parts in my junk box. Had enough left over to make a red/white flashlight for the teardrop.

Last week a rat chewed through our Tundra's window washer hose twice in three days, and left us some acorn shells in payment. Having read Tony's latest book, I'm thinking the alcohol in the fluid may have left us with a blind and crazy rat out there somewhere. Hope he doesn't get ahold of a gun!

Pooped on the front seats too. Now, we'll have flashing lights in the cabins of our vehicles. We already have a pair of $50 Rid-a-Rat brand flashers in the engine compartment. Sometimes they seem to annoy the rats enough they leave.

Shelly figured out the rats get from the engine compartment to the cabin via the air filter. The filter was chewed and had a nest on it, so Shelly's pretty sure about this one. She added some chicken wire to block the path so we'll see how that goes.

Tom

[tony.latham]

Having read Tony's latest book, I'm thinking the alcohol in the fluid may have left us with a blind and crazy rat out there somewhere. Hope he doesn't get ahold of a gun!

Yeah, but how was the book??? I'm hoping to have the audiobook version available soon.

I just put electronic rodent boxes in our vehicles today–-thanks to you, Tom. I hope they drive our furry little maniacs nuts.

I also keep a box of my "rodenticide" in the garage. It's a 50:50 mix of Durham's Rock Putty (plaster) with rolled oats. The little fellas eat it and leave, presumably looking for water. I've never found a dead one, but it can make a big difference, and there is no secondary poisoning issue like with real poisons.



Tony

[rjgimp]

Bought four shop vacs at an estate sale Friday. One of them had a 3 inch hole drilled in its bucket. I'm not sure why either.

Is that the orange Rigid with the white disc at the bottom? I have a large wet vac with a factory drain at the bottom. It's big... something like 12 gallons, so if you have that full of liquid that's 80+pounds you'll need to lift in order to dump out. With this one you wheel it to a floor drain and unscrew the cover from the drain.

Oh, why do I need four shop vacs? I don't. We currently have 16. Several for general cleaning in the shop, and the rest dedicated (or will be) to tools that have vacuum hose attachments. Sixten stinken shop vacs and no two alike!

...BTW, and FWIW, I have yet to find one with a bad motor. Everything else can be fixed, and usually all it needs is a good cleaning and a new set of filters.

Tom

Maybe with all those vac motors you could build a hovercraft like in the ad that's been in the back of Boys' Life magazine forever.

[rjgimp]

Regarding rodents, I discovered this guy on youtube. Apparently he actually HAS built a better mousetrap!

https://www.youtube.com/@ShawnWoodsMousetrapMonday

[TimC]

Regarding rodents, I discovered this guy on youtube. Apparently he actually HAS built a better mousetrap!

https://www.youtube.com/@ShawnWoodsMousetrapMonday

Haha. I was sucked into his YouTube world a couple years ago. For some reason finding all kinds of ways to catch mice was weirdly satisfying.

[RJ Howell]

Between trips and local exploring.. thank god I'm retired and have time now, I find other projects around the home.

This started as just grab a few small pines for a railing project. Now I see other possibilities of pole construction. Hmm.. I need to setup a bigger rack for drying now!
I have plenty of pines for use. Might as well use 'em! Do want a roof shelter & do want a greenhouse.. And away I go!

[TimC]

Between trips and local exploring.. thank god I'm retired and have time now, I find other projects around the home.

This started as just grab a few small pines for a railing project. Now I see other possibilities of pole construction. Hmm.. I need to setup a bigger rack for drying now!
I have plenty of pines for use. Might as well use 'em! Do want a roof shelter & do want a greenhouse.. And away I go!

That's an appealing project!

[Tom&Shelly]

Between trips and local exploring.. thank god I'm retired and have time now, I find other projects around the home.

This started as just grab a few small pines for a railing project. Now I see other possibilities of pole construction. Hmm.. I need to setup a bigger rack for drying now!
I have plenty of pines for use. Might as well use 'em! Do want a roof shelter & do want a greenhouse.. And away I go!

Great ideas! I've read that many woodsmen would cut, peel, and dry polls to have some on hand because they are so useful.

I peeled some pinion pine polls and made decorative curtain rods for our log cabin home. I got some more last spring that I intend to use to build a 1/12 scale doll house log cabin. (My wife makes doll house furniture as a business, and I think an authentic looking log cabin will do well.)

I try and cut them during the freeze to prevent bark beetle spread (they smell cut wood and nest near it). Found the polls cut in Fall can have a two tone color depending on how deeply I peel. The ones in Spring are more uniformly light.

Tom