Blackouts and Burglars

I often sing the praises of mountain living, but there are occassional downsides as well.

There was the scorpion I found in the garage the other night, for instance. Not a big deal (or a big scorpion...), but I assume there are some folks out there who really wouldn't want to find a scorpion in their garage.

Last night we had an eight-hour power outtage. Power went out around 2:20 p.m. when a transformer blew. Diane was home and saw it flicker around 4 p.m., followed the loud BOOM of another transformer blowing.

More BOOMS followed at 5:45, 6:30 and 7:30ish. Not quite sure what was going on -- nor was PG&E apparently -- but they got it back on at 10:30 p.m. And honestly it hasn't happened much since we've been here. Diane says the power used to go out every time it snowed at her old house in Avery, but we rarely lose power here. The BBQ and propane stove came in handy for dinner last night.

Then about 5 a.m. I heard noises in the house - it sounded like Idgie eating her dry food, which she doesn't often do at 5 a.m. So I got up to investigate and let her out to pee if need be, and I as walk toward the laundry room where the dog food is I head footsteps on the stairs down to the garage.

But the crunching sounds continued. Curious...

I turn on a light and see the masked burglar - a young raccoon calmly munching away on kibble. He hides behind the bag, and I try to figure out the best way to de-raccoon my house. (I'd left the garage door cracked open six inches or so to get some air in the garage over night, which is how he got in.) I set up a little barrier with a blanket and bar stool blocking off the hall coming out of the laundryroom that didn't lead back to the stairs, then just watched. He watched me, ate a few more kibbles, then came out.

Rather than sneaking along the wall as far away from me as possible then running down the stairs, the raccoon walked over to the blanket and stood up and looked at me a while -- and another one I hadn't seen behind the dog food bag followed him and stood and stared too -- then they both waddled down the stairs and took off. As burglars go, they were damn cute. Idgie and Diane slept through the whole thing.

Guess I shouldn't leave my garage door cracked open at night...

Bears and Extra-Large Dogs

Saturday was fan appreciation day at Memorial Stadium, and Frankie's Birthday, so naturally we went.

Diane got that penant you see peeking out behind Oski signed by a bunch of players and Cal Coach Jeff Tedford (see photo), and I got Frankie's football signed by the same bunch of players and coach while he was playing with the band.

The coolest thing we saw, though, was Betty. Betty was about 8 weeks old, and Diane got to pet her. She's an American Mastiff, but I didn't take pictures.

Here are some, however, of grown-up (and not so grown up) American Mastiffs.

The big guy here is Thibodeaux. (No idea who the woman is.) The small photo is also Thibodeaux when he was a pup. American Mastiffs apparently have a very nice temperment - kinda lazy but loving and loyal.
They are usually tan with black masks, or like the girls pictured below, brindle. We're not ready for a new member of the family and I'm not sure I'd go the purebred huge dog route anyway, but I do like big sweet dogs. And what faces!

Clearly Movement in the Right Direction

Yes, it's another electric usage and cost comparison, so you have been warned...

Thanks to CFLs, reinsulating our spa and a decent conscious effort to turn lights off and only use the ones we need, our August electric usage was 650 kilowatt hours, down from 998 last year. (22.4 per day from 33.3)

Our bill is $100, down from $200 last year.

Last year we were using an average of 33.4 kilowatt hours a day; this year it's 24.1 Last year from May to now, we'd paid PG&E $858. This year it's $476. (A 44.5% drop) Our usage is down from 4,210 to 2,923, a 30.6% drop.

This is clearly movement in the right direction. Can you imagine if everyone did this?

In Praise of New Parts

I love new parts.

Ordered a couple of small pieces from Bob's BMW in Jessup, Maryland last week and they came in yesterday. One was a plastic threaded knob that holds down the battery, replacing one that was functional but broken.

The other was this, the bleed valve for the front disk brake. (The rear brakes are drums, so no bleed valves there...)

The problem with brake fluid, which is what you bleed through this valve, is that it absorbs water from the air and promotes rust. The valve getting rusty can make it hard to turn, which can lead to rounding off the shoulders if you use a 12-point box-end wrench instead of a 6-point box-end wrench and necessitate buying new parts.

But new parts are shiny and clean and install nicely and make my motorcycle happy and safe, which is a priority, especially when it comes to brakes.

(Hey, here's another benefit of my workbench painting last week - neater pictures of parts!)

Bored & Geeky - A Bad Combination

On Monday afternoon I was stuck waiting for a phone call and didn't have any pressing work until said call came in. So I was Bored.

Decided to paint my workbenches white, since I had cabinet paint and they would look better and clean up easier than the unfinished (and stained) MDF and plywood does.

Did buy the sky blue paint and add the checkered band across the center bench. Like I said, Bored and Geeky...

Superhero Names for Us All

So I went to the post office today to send two more copies of my book proposal to my agent, and they have a Marvel comics promotion for usps.com which includes a $10,000 sweepstakes. So I entered, and after I submitted my entry it takes me to a "discover your secret identity" page. Type in your name and it tells you your superhero name. (It is very poorly named itself, because your secret identity name is your regular boring street name, a la Clark Kent, not your superhero name.

ANYWAY, I did us all.

According to the Post Office, I am really "Sledge Eternal Brain."

Sonnjea is Samurai Barracuda.
Scott is Samauri Krusher.
Sara is Sabretooth Vulcan.
Dave is either Eel Vulture or The Deadly Voyager, depending.
Annoymous Diane is Doomsday Nova
and...
Retired Mama is Radiation Madman! I knew it!!!!

Pie and Parts

Yeah, with that headline I'd be worried too. But the pie is delicious, peach, and entirely Diane-made right down to picking the fruit.

Here's the original picture of my motorcycle, and below it a current picture. I'd used Publisher to put in clever little arrows to point out improvements, but they've disappeared. (Apparently I'm not as clever as I thought...)

But if you look closely, you'll spot them. The front fork brace was chipped and rusty and the

nuts holding it in place were rusty. The rear shocks were rusty. The sidecovers were missing. The valve cover was faded and chipped.

I've also used the ebay to find a tool tray, which was missing when I got the bike, and made the seat lock work so the new tool tray won't go missing.

In other news, I saw Bourne yesterday and it's quite good.

Diane Goes to Football Camp

You know it had to happen.


Diane went to football camp today - about three hours on Memorial Stadium with Cal coaches and players in a camp for women.

She was walking slowly up the stairs when we got home, but I think the only muscle she really strained was her smile muscle!

Just a bit low!

Done and Done

Today I finished graduate school.

OK, I got the degree from Columbia University back in 1993, but it came with strings attached. Those strings were pulled by Sallie Mae, who has enjoyed getting a check from me every month for the past 14 years.

Well, Sallie can go to hell.

A few months ago, I transferred most of my remaining $7,500 balance onto a Discover card with a locked-in interest rate of 3.9%. (Sallie was taking 9%...) Paid off the remaining Sallie Mae balance a few months ago, and have been working through the $5,000 I put on Discover. Today I paid the last of that off and am, finally, DONE WITH STUDENT LOANS!

Unfortunately, Sallie had a buddy named Chase. Working to get him off my back next.