What did you do today?

[Spicoli43]

I didn't know they created a plant, but the Oil is absolutely worthless if not deadly over time.

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/is-canola-oil-healthy

 

[Flyover]

What kind of setup do you use with your guitars ie. amp, pedalboard, stomp boxes, etc?

Guitar -- Boss GT-10 effects processor -- Boss Katana 50.

I like the Katana, but the GT-10 is both insufficient and too elaborate--does way more than I need. I got it for free from a guitarist who switched to bass (not sure why he didn't sell it or trade for it) and I guess it's been a little helpful for learning to use effects and get that foot-hand-ear coordination, because up until a year ago I'd never really used effects at all. Never owned pedals or anything. (When I recorded I used virtual effects and amps and fiddled around from there.) But now that I have a sense of what I need and what sounds I'm going for I'd like to get rid of this beast and get some actual pedals and a pedalboard, which will hopefully be more reliable and easier to configure. Maybe sound better. Some features of the GT-10 are starting to fail.

 

[zannej]

Allergies are kicking my tail today and my brother had a podiatrist appointment today. Went in with him & the place reeked of mold and mildew. It's a very old building/office. It used to be the office of the primary doctors in town. One is dead and the other is retired. Don't know where the smell originated but they need to do something about it.

My brother will need surgery on his toe but they want to give him a month to get his blood sugar under control first. They want his A1C down. I'm going to get him set up with the Freestyle Libre that Mom refused to use and there's someone at our doctor's office who can show him how to use it. I'll be calling them tomorrow to see about when he can get that assistance. I also need to call the AC places again. I keep getting answering machines.

I don't know enough about guitars to know jack about pedals or pedalboards.

Dropped in to see my friend and as soon as my brother was walking up to the door, the new fluffy black kitten rushed to him like he was an old friend and wanted cuddles. He wanted to bring it home so badly. So do I, but I know we can't take more. But its sooo fluffy and adorable. I think my mom would love him if she saw him though. She has a soft spot for black cats and particularly fluffy ones.

I'm waiting for some glue to dry on some tongue depressor type wooden "craft" sticks because I'm going to use them to reinforce the top of my plastic drawer set. My fat cats cracked it. I glued two sticks together to be sturdier and I am going to tape it to the underside of the top.

 

[zannej]

There was a ridge so I couldn't get my craft sticks to go where I wanted them to so I need to add more reinforcement to the top of my drawer thingy, but what I put in is helping a little bit.

I added more shims to my wall.

I finally got ahold of someone to get a new AC condenser. I'm waiting for a callback. They said with installation and a 10 year warranty it's $5700+ for the outside unit. They offer financing but we'll probably pull from emergency savings and we need AC back. I'm waiting for the callback to set up the installation appointment. He said they can do it Monday but he needs to get the address. I hope he will call back soon.

Edit: He called back. Tax is already included in the price. $5741 and they are coming from about an hour away. Said they'd call Monday morning to make sure they have directions. Apparently this company specializes in rural service.

 

[havasu]

I added more shims to my wall.

Less is more. The idea is to create a pocket of air, to ensure ventilation. You are going to bugger this job if you continue with the shims, planks, pieces of plywood, pop-sickle sticks, paint stirrers, 1x4's, etc.

 

[zannej]

Less is more. The idea is to create a pocket of air, to ensure ventilation. You are going to bugger this job if you continue with the shims, planks, pieces of plywood, pop-sickle sticks, paint stirrers, 1x4's, etc.

Oh, I added shims to the 1x4s that needed to bump out just a little more to be flush. So, there was already wood there. I made it so that the cementboard will sit flush against it-- if that makes any sense. I'll get pics later. The "shims" were paint stirring sticks glued to the 1x4 so it would be even with the board right up against it. There is still plenty of air behind.

I still need to determine how out-of-square the walls are and how to deal with the tub being in crooked. If the right wall didn't prevent it, I could try to pivot the tub to be even with the left wall and back wall. Sucker won't budge though. I may have to trim the cementboard's bottom a bit to fit on the left wall and still be square. It should still get the surround out far enough to go over the flange. I will put instatrim around the bottom perimeter to hide unsightly gaps.

 

[havasu]

I read that the screws holding the tub won't budge? They have what is called an impact screwdriver, where you hit the head of this screwdriver and it forces screws out. If that dowsn't work, get a cheap oscillating flat blade cutter, and get those screws out, or loose. this is your only way to adjust the tub....slightly, so you don't snap the drain lines under the tub. Once you give the tub a slight adjustment, use plastic shims and screw in the screws until snug. This will steady the tub.

 

[zannej]

I read that the screws holding the tub won't budge? They have what is called an impact screwdriver, where you hit the head of this screwdriver and it forces screws out. If that dowsn't work, get a cheap oscillating flat blade cutter, and get those screws out, or loose. this is your only way to adjust the tub....slightly, so you don't snap the drain lines under the tub. Once you give the tub a slight adjustment, use plastic shims and screw in the screws until snug. This will steady the tub.
View attachment 30150View attachment 30151

The weird thing is, there are no screws on the tub flange. It's just stuck. Won't budge. I think its on mortar. Maybe my friend and I could get it to budge if we work together. If I had to pull from the right it would be easier but my left is the gimp arm & I already borked it gain trying to get the cap off my deodorant. LOL.
I'll talk to my friend and see if he can help me and if we can try to budge it without damaging it. Below the flange on the right there is room for it to move a little but behind and above that flange it is pretty tight. Might have to cut something out of the way a little. I think it would be better to get it to pivot just a little if possible.

 

[havasu]

If there are no screws, I myself would not try to force it. It may be embedded with foam, caulking or cement and that will just add to your problems. Just use shims to straighten your walls. Understand that most houses are never square. You just do the best you can to disguise the error.

 

[Spicoli43]

If there are no screws, I myself would not try to force it. It may be embedded with foam, caulking or cement and that will just add to your problems. Just use shims to straighten your walls. Understand that most houses are never square. You just do the best you can to disguise the error.

I agree 100%. At least if a House is built with Lowe's or HD 2x4's! All the garage shelving I built is close, but no cigar. I know the living room wall is whacked because the projector won't line up, but when I'm only looking at the wall, it looks perfectly fine.

I suspect round here they don't care about proper anything since a quake will probably come through... Of course, that applies to you as well.

 

[Eddie_T]

I got my new chromebook working it took me a while to remember how to log in. It has a better hinge design than my old one. I don't know what else has been updated. The old one still works but they stop updating software five years after manufacture. My new one only has four years left and was closed out for $99.

I also made some hamburger buns. This is the recipe, I halved it as I didn't want eight buns. I got into trouble with liquids as I forgot that I didn't halve the large egg. I kept adding flour until the dough was right.
40 minute hamburger bun recipe - Fox and Briar

 

[Spicoli43]

Made Chili, short on Tomato though, so I added a can of Enchilada sauce. Well, first off, I'm not a huge fan of the tangy taste of Enchilada Sauce, it works better with a Corn Tort to soak it up. My general dislike for said sauce is why the can said 2017.

Now, one will ask "Should I use 6 Year old Enchilada Sauce"... I didn't. It could get interesting in the digestive system tonight. At worse, I might meet Jesus, in which the conversation will go " Yeah, you're dead, and I'll show you your life and even the future, but first off, the can SAID IT WAS 6 years old, what were you thinking Umkay?... Did you forget to chill some Mexican water? I think I'll send you back to see if you do THAT again!"

No gut pain yet, so I think I'm good.

I was going to make some Instant Pot Swedish Meatballs, but the first step was to combine Beef and Pork and other ingredients and roll them up... No way to drain all the grease... I can't do that, my cardiac system would say NOPE.

 

[Flyover]

I think the expiration dates on canned food usually mean "best by" rather than "you'll die". Like maybe the flavor goes off a little. You should be fine, Spicoli.

Coincidentally, I made chili today too. I got the beans started late in the slow cooker (10:30am instead of the usual 7 or 8am) so it wasn't ready in time for dinner. I think the beans were also slowed down by the crushed tomatoes. My logic is that adding baking soda makes beans softer when you cook them (I do this when I'm making garbanzos for hummus), and baking soda is basic, so when I added the crushed tomatoes the acidity had the opposite effect and made the beans firmer--in other words, crunchy. It took a lot of extra time to cook that out of them. They're fine now, the chili's quite delicious actually, but it's gotta all go in the fridge and it'll be dinner tomorrow.

I'm up to 10 gallons of sap in the garage and there are more still collecting under the trees. Boil day is Sunday, I'm excited. Decided we're going to use a wood fire again. Hopefully the firewood isn't all soaked.

 

[68bucks]

Experation dates are generally for flavor reason. If the can wasn't bloated you'll be fine, probably.

 

[Eddie_T]

The last project where I needed a couple of 2x4s made me work up a sweat in Lowe's. I had about 20 pieces out in the aisle checking against the floor for twists and bows. I prolly should have just left them there and yelled cleanup on aisle whatever.

 

[Flyover]

My supply of free framing lumber and OSB is running down since they're finishing a lot of the (cheaply-and-wastefully-produced, cookie-cutter, very expensive) houses in the new developments adjacent to me. I haven't needed any in a while so I haven't been grabbing it, but I've got one eye out and I know eventually I'll either have to start driving further for it or go back to buying it like a commoner. On the plus side, my need for it is also dwindling since I've built pretty much all the shelves and stuff like that I need, and anything else I might build at this point would be finer projects for which tuba stock would be inappropriate anyway.

 

[Spicoli43]

I think the expiration dates on canned food usually mean "best by" rather than "you'll die". Like maybe the flavor goes off a little. You should be fine, Spicoli.

Coincidentally, I made chili today too. I got the beans started late in the slow cooker (10:30am instead of the usual 7 or 8am) so it wasn't ready in time for dinner. I think the beans were also slowed down by the crushed tomatoes. My logic is that adding baking soda makes beans softer when you cook them (I do this when I'm making garbanzos for hummus), and baking soda is basic, so when I added the crushed tomatoes the acidity had the opposite effect and made the beans firmer--in other words, crunchy. It took a lot of extra time to cook that out of them. They're fine now, the chili's quite delicious actually, but it's gotta all go in the fridge and it'll be dinner tomorrow.

I'm up to 10 gallons of sap in the garage and there are more still collecting under the trees. Boil day is Sunday, I'm excited. Decided we're going to use a wood fire again. Hopefully the firewood isn't all soaked.

You don't soak beans overnight?

What do you mean baking soda is "basic"? I have only gone by Alkaline or Acidic for foods.

When a Maple kicks out a bunch of syrup, then you remove the tap, what happens to the tree?

 

[Spicoli43]

The last project where I needed a couple of 2x4s made me work up a sweat in Lowe's. I had about 20 pieces out in the aisle checking against the floor for twists and bows. I prolly should have just left them there and yelled cleanup on aisle whatever.

YEP... Been that way here for eons. I remember going through probably 50 to find 2 good ones right before they went to $9 something... I left a nice review about that concerning the quality and price. They aren't FOR building furniture though, they are just FOR framing, which doesn't make sense because they have the framing ones that are short of 8 ft., then they have the 8 footers that are the same horrific quality.

 

[Flyover]

You don't soak beans overnight?

What do you mean baking soda is "basic"? I have only gone by Alkaline or Acidic for foods.

When a Maple kicks out a bunch of syrup, then you remove the tap, what happens to the tree?

Nah, I don't soak my beans. Just put them in the slow cooker in the morning along with water and whatever seasonings, and they're done by the time I have to start preparing dinner.

Yeah by "basic" I meant alkaline. I couldn't remember if the word was "alkaline" or "alkali" so I typed basic instead.

When you remove the tap, the maple tree heals. I can barely identify the spot where the tap was 2 years ago. It's to the maple tree about what getting blood drawn is to us, I think.

Today I obtained about a cord and a half of cherry logs for firewood. My friend's step-dad's neighbor's cousin's coworker's uncle's ex's bridge partner's whatever had a huge cherry tree fall down in their yard and I was summoned both to help with the trunk, which my friend was milling into slabs, and to take whatever I wanted of the larger branches, which was as much as I could fit in my tiny underpowered car. I didn't lift weights today but thanks to that activity I got a full workout! I cut all the logs into ~16" lengths and they are now stacked neatly in my woodpile. They'll be great for fires at the end of summer I think.

Which is good because I needed to backfill for all the wood I'm about to burn tomorrow.

 

[Spicoli43]

Nah, I don't soak my beans. Just put them in the slow cooker in the morning along with water and whatever seasonings, and they're done by the time I have to start preparing dinner.

Yeah by "basic" I meant alkaline. I couldn't remember if the word was "alkaline" or "alkali" so I typed basic instead.

When you remove the tap, the maple tree heals. I can barely identify the spot where the tap was 2 years ago. It's to the maple tree about what getting blood drawn is to us, I think.

Ok, well when you get Old, you might be concerned about Phytic Acid, which is why I soak Beans and Lentils overnight. How much PA is removed is for someone with a nice lab to tell me. So far, no takers.

Do you have to wait a year to tap the tree, or can you go right to the other side?

I would line the entire perimeter of my yard with Red Maples if nature allowed them to grow here.