And It's Still HOT

It was 102 here yesterday and will probably be close to that again today.  I'm in a bit of a funk too.  I don't know that the weather has anything to do with it but I woke up after a restless night with a few aches and pains, a little more than usual.  It has me really not feeling like doing much of anything.  It seems to have affected the brain some.  

Part of the funk I am in is not being able to attend worship services like we have always done.  I am feeling a little disconnected from my brethren.  We have chosen to stay away since there is no mandatory mask requirement.  That is our choice due to my high risk health conditions.  I don't have issues with their not requiring a mask.  That is the way it should be.  I would not want my presence to require others to do something they don't want to do, even though I would wear a mask if that is what it took to enable someone else to attend.  So we have been streaming services but may consider attending where the kids attend since they have the mask requirement.  It would also allow us to see them.  But it is a very long drive to get there.  

Happy Trails

It's Been Hot

It's been hot here.  Yes, it is always hot this time of year here in Texas.  However this has been an unusually hot summer.  We set some heat records in July and now again in August.  We have had several days of 105+ and even a few 107's.  This is hot for this part of Texas as we generally stay a little cooler due to our proximity to the Gulf of Mexico.  And this isn't just a few days, it's been like this for the entire month so far.  However, we saw some relief earlier this week with a couple very quick showers and some early morning coolness that made our morning walks very nice.  We have also had some pretty low humidity during this heat which is very unusual.  This morning we woke to thunder storms and have been getting some very good and much needed rain.  Hopefully this is the start of the transition into Fall that we get here in August.

I'm hoping this rain this morning will kick start the few plants (tomato and bell peppers) I bought last week hoping to score some fresh veggies before the cold hits.  Unfortunately the only tomatoes they had take a long time to mature.  It may be too long at 65-75 days.  Wanted 55 but they are not to be had.  This was a spur of the moment purchase as I had thought I wouldn't plant anything until next Spring.  My garden is over grown with Bermuda grass and it is nearly impossible to eradicate.  I have given up trying to.  Although once my veggies quit I will cover the rest of the garden with black plastic and let the sun kill it off.  I will then get out there and clean it out as best I can and bring in some more badly needed compost.  

I have a few project waiting on cooler weather.  Painting some siding, cleaning out the large flower bed of random weeds, clover and hackberry etc.  Last October I had my trees trimmed in the front of the house costing me a ton of $$.  If you know Live Oak trees, you know that when you do that they start sprouting a lot of shoots on the trunks etc.  We need to get out there and do our best to get as much cleaned up as we can.  If not, it will look as bad as it did before our major trim and it will all have been for naught.  We can reach the worst of it with our pole saws and maybe a ladder.  The other we will just have to live with.  Can't afford to have them come back out again.

Went to see a neurologist last week.  Nothing serious.  Been experiencing some hand tremors over the last few years and it has gotten a little worse.  Something called essential tremor.  They control it with beta blockers, blood pressure meds.  I am already on some for blood pressure.  Adding more could make me even more sluggish.  They said if they bothered me enough that is the route to go but left the ball in my court.  I opted to do without for now as it is mostly random and not 24/7.  I was relieved it wasn't something more serious. 

I have been baking bread as a china virus hobby.  I have tried several different things and have settled on one version.  I bake two loaves about every two weeks.  No more store bought bread for us for the foreseeable future.  It ain't purty but it eats good.  I also have been trying out new recipes, mostly from Kent Rollins, with a few twists on his recipes.  I'm sure he won't mind me changing a few things for my own personal tastes.  Look him up on You Tube if you don't know about him.  

Today is my Mother's 88th birthday.  We will go and visit her Sunday and take her some lunch and a small gift.  Not much else planned for the coming week.

Happy Trails

Not So Quick Project

The cedar chest is finished, or as finished as it's going to get at this point.  I had planned to just do the top lid to see how that turned out before I thought about doing the rest of the chest.  I ran into an issue I wasn't sure how to deal with.  I have a few pictures to show what I am talking about.  

The first two photos are the underside of the lid.

With that little information I found out this chest is about 70 years old.  They were made in the 40's and 50's.  I have some cedar oil I used on the inside trying to restore the 'smell' since sanding did very little.  After two coats there still is not much smell.

This is the lid and what I was starting with.  I had hoped not to have to sand, but I determined quickly that wasn't going to work.  The finish and wood was in too bad of condition.  

As you can see it had a very dull finish and was pretty marred up.  I had already hit it with the orbital sander lightly one time.  It just made it worse.  And the sander was getting some sort of buildup on the sand paper.  I was using a 220 grit.  Steel wool prior to this did nothing.

So out comes the belt sander.  I figured that it would handle the job a little faster along with taking care of that build up.  I used a 120 grit.  That buildup?

This is what happened then:

Apparently that black looking substance is something in the wood.  It just smeared it all over the lid and gummed up my brand new sanding belt.  I determined that is coming from all the dark knots in the wood.  Is it still seeping cedar sap after all these years?  No idea really.  So sanding stopped.  I was just making a mess.  I tried several things to get the residue off the wood and nothing at all worked, not even something the wifely unit had called Goo Gone.  Then I tried Goof Off, what did I have to lose at this point?  It worked, with some very vigorous rubbing.  

However, I just could not sand it anymore like this.  So the top is a lot rougher to the touch so it won't have that glass like surface I wanted.  Even with 10 coats of polyurethane with the last coast being poured on the wood so it would build up a nice surface.  Still not enough.  But it does have a great color now.  The rest of the chest will remain as it is for now.  I don't want to tackle that until I figure out what is going on with that wood 'leaking?'

Happy Trails

Quick Project

I have an old cedar chest that belonged to my Grandmother.  I got it when my Grandparents passed away.  They passed within a month of each other.  They hold a special place in my heart, probably like most of you.  I spent almost every day with them from birth until I entered school at age 6.  She pretty much raised me.  My Grandfather was a Firefighter (Fireman in those days) and was not there as much as she was.  She was my caretaker while my parents worked.  This was 1953-1959.  These were my Father's parents.  With so much time spent with her in those early formative years I became very attached to her.  I think it was a natural thing that happens when you spend so much time with someone at those ages.  My Mother recognized this attachment.  

I digress.  Anyway, that cedar chest was something I remembered along with several other objects that are strong connections to that time and to them.  The cedar chest to me was a treasure chest of sorts.  I remember her opening it and showing me things she had saved and were obviously important to her.  No I don't remember any specific items.  All these things just added to my memories and a desired to have them eventually.  I am way to sentimental for my own good.  More so than anyone in our family.  It was easy to have everyone agree that I could have them and I treasure them for what they mean to mean and not at all for their value. 

Over the years those things got little care and were more or less forgotten.  The finish on this piece is pretty bad.  It had been varnished and most of that is gone except for a few spots that are dried and crusty.  Not to mention when dust and dirt settles on something for years and years it almost becomes a finish of it's own.

So today I started trying to refinish the lid.  It is the most visible part of the chest and shows the most wear.  I hope not to have to sand it as I like the color that it is.  I am starting with cleaning and maybe some buffing with steel wool to remove and build up.  We will see how that goes before I go any further.  It shouldn't take too long to see results.  

Happy Trails

Weekend News

Well not really news more of an update.  The real news, to us, is at the end of this post.

'K's self imposed quarantine is over and she has survived not coming down with the Bat Flu.  We are thankful for that.  She actually lifted her isolation Thursday evening and we had Son#2 and his in laws out for supper.  His in laws were in town for a week to visit the baby.  We wanted to see them before they left and also we hadn't seen the baby in more than 2 weeks.  I had an extra large chicken that was given to us from a friend whose daughter raised a bunch of them for FFA at school.  Once they were judged they had to dispose of them and were asking everyone they knew to please take one.  They had 40.  When I say extra large I would guess this one weighed in around 10 lbs.  They are normally 3-4 lbs.  So we are still eating on that thing.

I have become a big fan of a man I found on You Tube.  He is a genuine cowboy and a chuck wagon cook.  He doesn't call himself a chef.  I have used several of his recipes and he also makes me smile every time I watch.  He has fun with his cooking and doesn't take himself real serious, but I can vouch for some of his recipes. There are a bunch more I am planning on trying.   There's nothing fancy at all, just good ole solid cooking.  He is a hoot.  I have even bought a few things off his website and I will get one of his cookbooks eventually.  If you're interested in learning some good cooking recipes (most are done outside with actual fire) look him up on the You Tube.  Kent Rollins-cowboy cooking.  

We will return to our worship services this Sunday after an absence since the end of February.  We are truly looking forward to that.  It is not without some trepidation.  I will only say, the reason we feel comfortable enough to return, has upset some others.  Disappointing to say the least.  We will try our best to keep our Christian attitude in the forefront and and only have a kind heart toward them all.  

Happy Trails