Summer House Project (Repair Front Porch)

April 30, 2023 ~ Chuck ~ Leave a comment

Susanna and I are working on a 5-year plan to get the house in shape so it will be ready to sell. A 5-year plan will give us a few years of wiggle room on selling the house before I retire. There are a lot of projects that should be done before we should sell the house. The most pressing project is the front porch.

The paint was peeling from the porch ceiling, the light was no longer working, and the front steps were rotting. Susanna kicked off the project a few weeks ago by pulling down the stairs and then removing the existing ceiling, which appeared to be thin (1/4″) wainscotting-type boards, likely original from when the house was built 140-years ago. It does look like the roof isn’t leaking, and the peeling paint was just due to age. The boards were solid (no rot), but it wasn’t worth the effort to remove the peeling paint and properly prepare the original boards.

I decided to replace the ceiling with tongue and groove boards milled from my existing stock of eastern white pine (at least as much of it as I can get out of existing stock). I think I have enough to do about half of the ceiling, so I’ll have to pick up more in the near future to give it time to dry before milling.

I milled up a few sample pieces a week ago to make sure it was what we wanted. I was able to get 4 pieces from each of the rough pine boards I had stored in the loft, for a total of (I think) 48 pieces. This morning I took a few hours and milled up all the lumber I had. The boards were milled to about 7/8″ thick and 4 3/8″ wide and between 5′ and 6′ long. I then ran them through the shaper to give the tongue and groove profile.

My next step is to prime and paint the boards, and then finally cut to proper length and install. I was hoping for a nice day this week to lay out all the boards outside and get the painting done in a batch, but with rain today and a lousy week forecast, I started painting them in the workshop tonight with Izzy’s help. Not the fastest process, but she was able to help me get 10 boards primed before she had to come in and get ready for bed. Tomorrow we can put on the top coat of exterior paint.

I was a little hesitant about using eastern white pine. It is very soft and has zero rot resistance. However it is local, cheap , I had a bunch on hand and I can still find it for $1/bdft. I kept the boards fairly thick and am using a decent primer and paint, so hopefully this ceiling will last another 100 years and paint job will last a decade or more before needing work (or at least past us selling the house).

My workshop helper: Izzy helping me prime the boards for the front porch ceiling.

Spring Break Trip (DC – Days 3 and 4)

April 13, 2023 ~ Chuck ~ Leave a comment

We are wrapping up our trip to DC. Susanna, Izzy and I drive home tomorrow morning. My dad, Barbara and Apuuli fly back to Missouri on an early flight tomorrow.

Yesterday we visited the National Air and Space Museum in the morning. We again at lunch from the meal trucks. After lunch, the group split up. My dad and Apuuli stayed downtown and visited more museums. Susanna, Barbara, Izzy and I headed to Georgetown to walk around and check out the stores and were back in time for the kids to get an hour or so at the pool.

Today we started at the Library of Congress. We walked a bit and found a place to sit down for lunch (finally, no more food trucks). This afternoon we are back at the hotel to relax a bit before dinner.

Next generation spacecraft at the Air and Space Museum.

Izzy and Apuuli enjoying the shade at lunch near the Air and Space Museum.

Izzy, just a little bored, at the Library of Congress.

Spring Break Trip (DC – Day 2)

April 11, 2023April 11, 2023 ~ Chuck ~ Leave a comment

Today we took a walk around the monuments and ended early afternoon to give everyone a chance to rest and the kids a chance to play in the pool. We started by getting off the blue line at Arlington and walking across the Arlington Memorial Bridge to the Lincoln Memorial. From there we went by the Korean War Memorial and the MLK Memorial. We again ate lunch from a lunch truck, passed by the White House, stopped for coffee and finished up at McPherson Square Metrorail Station for the trip back to the hotel. Izzy is having the time of her life with Apuuli.

Selfie with Izzy at the Lincoln Memorial

Group picture at the Lincoln Memorial (Dad was still wandering through the exhibit downstairs). Susanna, Izzy, and me with Barbara and Apuuli.

Izzy and Apuuli at the Lincoln Memorial.

Playing on the Arlington Memorial Bridge.

Spring Break Trip (DC – Day 1)

April 10, 2023 ~ Chuck ~ Leave a comment

Today we enjoyed a leisurely start, eating breakfast (Izzy eating 2 breakfasts) at the hotel and heading into the city to visit the Museum of Natural History. The museum was a hit for the kids, with the favorites being the T-rex fossil (eating a Triceratops), the mummies in the Egypt section, and the crystals and gems sections. We had lunch and a subsequent ice-cream snack at the food trucks that were outside the museum.

After the museum, we attempted to walk to the White House to get a look, but were overtaken by events. The Easter Egg Roll had the entire area blocked off, and some problem in the subway kept us from taking the blue line back to our car. After careful consultation with the oracle called Google, we were able to find a bus route that took us back to our car.

The kids headed to the pool as soon as we got to the hotel, and we ate take-out for dinner.

Izzy enjoying the Natural History Museum.

Izzy's favorite exhibit in the museum. — The favorite exhibit!

Susanna enjoying a coffee with a little photobomb by Izzy.

Spring Break Trip (Drive to DC)

April 10, 2023April 11, 2023 ~ Chuck ~ Leave a comment

This week is Izzy’s spring break. This year we decided to get away from the house for the week and head to DC. My Dad, Barbara and Apuuli are joining us for the week. They arrived a day earlier than us and stayed in Crystal City. We picked them up and all of us are staying at a hotel in Alexandria; I wanted to find a hotel with free parking, breakfast (Izzy’s second favorite part of staying in a hotel) and a swimming pool (Izzy’s favorite part).

Our drive south was pretty uneventful. We stopped by Wilmington, Delaware on the drive down:

Izzy working on her standing scorpion pose.

Outside the Delaware Childrens Museum. The museum was closed, but we got to explore outside.

Another picture along the Wilmington Riverwalk.

Workshop Electrical Repairs

April 2, 2023 ~ Chuck ~ Leave a comment

We had an power surge (or rather a long period with too high of a voltage on one phase) a few weeks ago. The electrical problem was caused by a problem with the nearest power transformer and impacted our house and two of our neighbors’ houses. The power surge cooked the 24-volt transformer in our furnace relay board, some surge strips, the whole house surge protector, and caused a minor fire in the breaker box in the workshop.

I was lucky that Home Depot had the part in stock for the furnace, and I was able to fix the problem that afternoon (after much stress). I was able to get power back to the workshop temporarily while I waited for the new breaker box to arrive. Today the weather supported turning the power off to the workshop and replacing the breaker panel. It helped that Susanna and Izzy are off at Swedish School today, so I have the whole day to work.

The project took about a half-day to complete and only took three trips to Home Depot to pick up parts that I needed.

The old panel with burn marks on the top right caused by the electrical voltage surge

The new panel wired up. They didn’t have the exact same panel in stock, but I was able to get one with two more circuits that fit in the same space.

Monday Morning Hike – Millbrook Marsh Nature Center

March 7, 2023March 7, 2023 ~ Chuck ~ Leave a comment

I’m spending the first part of the week in State College, PA for work. I didn’t have to go into work until later morning on Monday, so took the time to do a short hike at the nearby Millbrook Marsh Nature Center. My work days are long and tiring sitting in a room, so it was nice to be able to get time outside, even if it was cold and mostly overcast.

Covered bridge near the Millbrook Marsh Nature Center, State College, PA

Saturday Morning Hike

January 7, 2023January 7, 2023 ~ Chuck ~ Leave a comment

This morning Will, Izzy and I took Hoagie on a short (2-mile) hike in Groton at the Candlewood Ridge property. It was cold and damp, but at least not raining today. We all needed to get out of the house for a bit. The Candlewood Ridge property is very flat and a very easy hike, but a little more crowded than some of the hikes farther inland.

After our hike we headed to Lee’s Toy and Hobby to window shop. Will and I are looking at model trains, and Izzy is looking at everything and anything; we are talking about trying to setup a train in the basement. I’ve been trying to get out walking more and dragging the rest of the family as often as they are willing.

Hoagie enjoying our rest stop on the trail in the Sand Plain at the junction of the red and blue trails.

Candlewood Ridge Trail Map. We hiked from the southern parking lot and did the short red loop off of the blue trail.

Welcome to 2023

January 2, 2023January 2, 2023 ~ Chuck ~ Leave a comment

I used to write a long post at around this time each year to reflect on the past year and think about what I wanted to do in the upcoming year, but haven’t in several years. I’ve also stopped writing regularly in this blog over the past few years. I’m not 100% sure why, but I think it is probably in large part due to my ADHD (I get bored with things). But I figured I should give it a try today.

What do I think I want to accomplish this year? I started ended last year with a new job at work and I think that will take a lot of my focus. But I also have some personal goals:

I want to get outside more often and do more hiking and exercise. I started the year off right with hikes yesterday and today.

Izzy and Hoagie taking a break on our hike this morning.

We picked up paddle boards at the end of last summer and are looking to get on the water more as the weather warms up in the spring. I have been trying to explore more local trails; getting Hoagie out has certainly helped encourage me to get out more.
Will and I passed our amateur radio tests in mid-November. I’ve been building a shack in the basement. With the cold weather, I find it hard to get motivated to spend a lot of time in the wood shop. Plus it gets expensive to heat. I think that if I spend a little more time in the basement, I’ll be able to keep the basement a little cleaner.

My workbench in the basement. It will be my electronics workbench and ham shack.

I have a few family goals as well:

I’m planning a long vacation to Sweden with Susanna and Izzy in August. I plan on getting some time to just settle in and explore the area. We are planning on retiring to Sweden, so I need to figure out what I’ll do there when I retire. And yes, I have a few years before I can retire.
I’d like to rebuild our front porch. We don’t use it much, so it has fallen into disrepair. The stairs are starting to rot and the porch ceiling is in terrible shape. I’d also like to ensure that the posts aren’t rotting and possibly replace the porch floor.

In general, I’d like to spend less time staring at my phone and more time actually living life! I do think I should try to write here more often. It helps me focus a bit.

My always faithful and willing hiking companion, Hoagie.

Pictures from Rottnest Island, Western Australia

October 8, 2022 ~ Chuck ~ Leave a comment

I’m back in Western Australia working. This is one of my favorite places to visit; I’ve been here over a half-dozen times. Yet, in all the times I’ve been here, I haven’t visited Rottnest Island, home to the quokkas. We have the weekend off, so my colleague, Rachael, and I took the early morning ferry to the island Saturday to explore. After walking aimlessly a bit, we returned to the main settlement and caught a free quokka tour and then got on the hop-on hop-off bus for a tour around the island. We asked to get dropped off between normal stops so we could hike to the Oliver Hill Guns. After the guns, we hiked to the Wadjemup Lighthouse, and then caught the bus to the west end where we could see the seals swimming by Cathedral Rock. We took the bus back to Thompson Bay where we ate lunch at the bakery with the quokkas wandering around at our feet and then caught the 2:30 ferry back to Fremantle.

We only saw the quokkas at the main settlement; they are naturally nocturnal animals except for the handful that have learned to look for food scraps during the day where the tourists are hanging out. It was well worth the visit, and I could have spent a few more hours exploring the island.