I spent much of the day hacking at the earth and sifting stones out of clay and shale that were as hard as concrete. There's not much to put into a photo when you're just moving dirt from point A to point B ad the distance from A to B is about 10 feet. Still, it was a pretty good workout. The weather was ever so slightly cooler (low 80s instead of high 80s) and there was a nice breeze blowing much of the day. I worked from around 8:30 until 2 PM with a short break to grab a bite to eat and feed the cats their lunch. Then ran down the hill for the mail and some groceries. Back at it at 5 PM when things cooled down a little and the shade began to encroach upon the work area.
The toughest part of the day was a full hour spent trying to grub out the root system of two ancient multiflora roses. I had lopped off the growing portions above ground when I laid out the bed and only ran into these stumps when I started moving the dirt from the center of the bed. They were about three inches in diameter at the ground and each had three or four roots that were about the same size. To make matters more difficult, one was growing through that buried wire fence I mentioned.
Other than those two snags, the work was much easier than the last few days. It will probably take me another day or day and a half to finish with the earth that is there. After that it will be a matter of finding enough additional soil to fill the planing bed. I've already scouted around the property and think I can grab some from the bank behind the house and from along side the trail heading into the woods. I'll also go get a couple of large bags (bales?) of peat moss at Agway to add some organic material to the top six inches. That and a good heavy mulching with straw and leaves (once they fall from the trees) will do the trick.
We're due to get some rain late tonight and through Saturday so I may have to switch to project B tomorrow. That means finishing the insulation of the attic floor. There are about 10 joists gaps that have no insulation in them. Most are directly above the laundry room and foyer so it's not a big problem. But to get to them I'll have to spend an hour moving some of the boxes of Rick's belongings and Christmas ornaments. At least tomorrows outside temperature is supposed to be in the low 70s so it won't be too warm in the attic. Keeping the cats out could be a challenge, however.
Friday, September 05, 2008
Thursday, September 04, 2008
Aerie Planting Bed Day 3
With the first four courses in place this morning went very swiftly. I only had to lengthen the trenches on each side wall to accommodate the eight-foot long timbers that would top off the walls. After using all of the 20 timbers I had purchased, I wasn’t happy with the fact that the side walls were so far below the grade of the lawn so I went and picked up 10 more timbers. Now the western wall is pretty much level with the lawn but the eastern one is still about three inches below grade.
The end of the Eastern Wall:
The end of the Western Wall:
If you look closely at the last picture, you can see that I used shorter pieces on the bottom to cheat a little. They are four and six foot long instead of the full eight foot of the last three rows. It saved some back breaking labor but not much. I’ll still have to dig much of the soil out to sieve it for stones and roots before putting it back into the hole. I’ll be going down about 20-24 inches to provide some loose soil for the roots of the plants we will put in. Over a 16’x8’ area that’s a lot of dirt and rock to be moving.
I ended up with eight rows of timbers in total which was two rows more than I thought I would need. I didn’t measure for square because of the opensided nature of the bed, but the rear corners look to be right angles.
The front will get a row of stones (larger flat ones) to make a definitive boundary between the lawn and garden area. Considering the number of stones I’ve gotten out of the trenches, I should have plenty of those when I get done. Of course, for every stone that comes out of the ground, there is that much less garden soil. I’ll have to find some from somewhere to fill that beast of a hole. Worse comes to worse, I’ve got three piles of topsoil up at the Bolt Hole from when I built the barn.
The 5 pound sledge made driving the 6" spikes pretty easy.
Well, that’s pretty much it for Day 3. I’ll go out later and start shoveling some of that dirt through a ½” mesh screen. Small stones and pebbles will go into the sidewall trenches on the outside side of the timbers as back fill. Some will go into the bottom of the bed to provide fill and drainage much as one would put gravel in the bottom of a flower pot. The larger flat stones will find their way into a wall somewhere. The rest….who knows.
Right now it's up to 84 degrees again and the slight breeze that was blowing at noon has vanished. The thin cloud cover has more holes than Swiss cheese allowing plenty of sunlight to fall on the work area. I'm going to take it easy this afternoon. I think I've earned it.
The soil will be there tomorrow and there's supposed to be a bit more breeze (Gustov? Hannah?) even if the forecast is for 85 degrees. Then things get cooler with some rain after midnight Friday into Saturday. I can get a lot more done tomorrow if I'm rested.
(I kept kicking myself for not doing the last three days' work over the weekend wen the high was only around 70 degrees. As it is, I lost another 5 pounds of water weight yesterday despite the Gatorade and water I was drinking. Yeah, some of it came back after dinner but I was still 3 pounds lighter from yesterday morning to this morning.
Let's see...a gallon of water is approximately 7 pounds. I lost 5 pounds, much of it water. That means I was down about 3 quarts. If I was an internal combustion engine and down three quarts of oil I'd be in big trouble. Come to think of it, I am an internal combustion engine. No wonder I felt like hell at the end of the day yesterday!)
The end of the Eastern Wall:
The end of the Western Wall:
If you look closely at the last picture, you can see that I used shorter pieces on the bottom to cheat a little. They are four and six foot long instead of the full eight foot of the last three rows. It saved some back breaking labor but not much. I’ll still have to dig much of the soil out to sieve it for stones and roots before putting it back into the hole. I’ll be going down about 20-24 inches to provide some loose soil for the roots of the plants we will put in. Over a 16’x8’ area that’s a lot of dirt and rock to be moving.
I ended up with eight rows of timbers in total which was two rows more than I thought I would need. I didn’t measure for square because of the opensided nature of the bed, but the rear corners look to be right angles.
The front will get a row of stones (larger flat ones) to make a definitive boundary between the lawn and garden area. Considering the number of stones I’ve gotten out of the trenches, I should have plenty of those when I get done. Of course, for every stone that comes out of the ground, there is that much less garden soil. I’ll have to find some from somewhere to fill that beast of a hole. Worse comes to worse, I’ve got three piles of topsoil up at the Bolt Hole from when I built the barn.
The 5 pound sledge made driving the 6" spikes pretty easy.
Well, that’s pretty much it for Day 3. I’ll go out later and start shoveling some of that dirt through a ½” mesh screen. Small stones and pebbles will go into the sidewall trenches on the outside side of the timbers as back fill. Some will go into the bottom of the bed to provide fill and drainage much as one would put gravel in the bottom of a flower pot. The larger flat stones will find their way into a wall somewhere. The rest….who knows.
Right now it's up to 84 degrees again and the slight breeze that was blowing at noon has vanished. The thin cloud cover has more holes than Swiss cheese allowing plenty of sunlight to fall on the work area. I'm going to take it easy this afternoon. I think I've earned it.
The soil will be there tomorrow and there's supposed to be a bit more breeze (Gustov? Hannah?) even if the forecast is for 85 degrees. Then things get cooler with some rain after midnight Friday into Saturday. I can get a lot more done tomorrow if I'm rested.
(I kept kicking myself for not doing the last three days' work over the weekend wen the high was only around 70 degrees. As it is, I lost another 5 pounds of water weight yesterday despite the Gatorade and water I was drinking. Yeah, some of it came back after dinner but I was still 3 pounds lighter from yesterday morning to this morning.
Let's see...a gallon of water is approximately 7 pounds. I lost 5 pounds, much of it water. That means I was down about 3 quarts. If I was an internal combustion engine and down three quarts of oil I'd be in big trouble. Come to think of it, I am an internal combustion engine. No wonder I felt like hell at the end of the day yesterday!)
Aerie Planting Bed Days 1 and 2
I’m into Day 3 of the Planting Bed project here at the Aerie.
Day 1 was spent prepping the area for the first course of landscape timbers. Trying to get a nice level surface when there are stones of every size (I would say shape too but they are all flat) was not easy. When I got as close to level as humanly possible, I resorted to the use of pea gravel placed in a trench. That allowed me to get the bubble in the center of the two lines instead of having its nose on one.
By the end of Day 1 I pretty much had the trenches cut for the side walls and a flat surface on which to place the timbers on the back wall. I cheated a little on the side walls by using four-foot long pieces for the bottom courses. That way, I didn’t have to cut into the embankment quite so far.
Here’s a view of the placement:
It's just off the lawn and down the slope. I needed to position it in such a way that it didn't interfere with the over head power line or prevent access to the power pole upon which a transformer sits. As it is now, the power company should have no difficulty pulling a truck with a cherry picker over the lawn and to the power pole.
The sun shines on this area from around 9:30 AM until roughly 4-5 PM. That should be sufficient for beans, tomatoes and other vegetables we plan to put in next year.
Day 2 went a little more smoothly. Having already managed a flat and level surface for the back wall to rest upon, I was able to start actually building the walls.
The bottom of the back wall was merely two eight-foot timbers. The first two rows of both sides were four-foot pieces cut on the chop saw. The second row of the long wall was built of an eight-footer in the middle so it bridged the joint below and two four-footers on the end. Two spikes went into each side of the eight-footer and three into each four-footer. The following rear courses were built using two eight-footers.
By staggering the corners, I created an overlap into which I could drive a 6” spike to tie the side walls into the rear wall.
On the top row of this photo, there is a spike in the corner, another about 9" to the left and a third in the side wall timber about 6" from the end. Other spikes were driven into each timber depending upon its length but no fewer than three spikes were used on each.
Day 1 was spent prepping the area for the first course of landscape timbers. Trying to get a nice level surface when there are stones of every size (I would say shape too but they are all flat) was not easy. When I got as close to level as humanly possible, I resorted to the use of pea gravel placed in a trench. That allowed me to get the bubble in the center of the two lines instead of having its nose on one.
By the end of Day 1 I pretty much had the trenches cut for the side walls and a flat surface on which to place the timbers on the back wall. I cheated a little on the side walls by using four-foot long pieces for the bottom courses. That way, I didn’t have to cut into the embankment quite so far.
Here’s a view of the placement:
It's just off the lawn and down the slope. I needed to position it in such a way that it didn't interfere with the over head power line or prevent access to the power pole upon which a transformer sits. As it is now, the power company should have no difficulty pulling a truck with a cherry picker over the lawn and to the power pole.
The sun shines on this area from around 9:30 AM until roughly 4-5 PM. That should be sufficient for beans, tomatoes and other vegetables we plan to put in next year.
Day 2 went a little more smoothly. Having already managed a flat and level surface for the back wall to rest upon, I was able to start actually building the walls.
The bottom of the back wall was merely two eight-foot timbers. The first two rows of both sides were four-foot pieces cut on the chop saw. The second row of the long wall was built of an eight-footer in the middle so it bridged the joint below and two four-footers on the end. Two spikes went into each side of the eight-footer and three into each four-footer. The following rear courses were built using two eight-footers.
By staggering the corners, I created an overlap into which I could drive a 6” spike to tie the side walls into the rear wall.
On the top row of this photo, there is a spike in the corner, another about 9" to the left and a third in the side wall timber about 6" from the end. Other spikes were driven into each timber depending upon its length but no fewer than three spikes were used on each.
70-0
In looking over the scores for last week's games, the Penn State drubbing of Coastal Carolina (66-10) stands out. But it was not the worst defeat of the weekend.
No, that distinction belongs to the Vandals of Idaho University. They not only got shutout but gave up 70 points while doing so. Yeah, Arizona scored a school record 49 points int he first half before cruising to a 70-0 victory over the hapless Vandal squad.
The game was delayed at the start for an hour when a heavy thunderstorm hit the area and it rained for much of the game. I bet the Vandals were real happy to have traveled down from Moscow for that.
My son is a graduate of Idaho.
As is Governor Palin.
Perhaps she can talk to the Governor of Idaho and arrange disaster relief or something. maybe the team could be exiled to Tattu Island at the far end of the Aleutians.
No, that distinction belongs to the Vandals of Idaho University. They not only got shutout but gave up 70 points while doing so. Yeah, Arizona scored a school record 49 points int he first half before cruising to a 70-0 victory over the hapless Vandal squad.
The game was delayed at the start for an hour when a heavy thunderstorm hit the area and it rained for much of the game. I bet the Vandals were real happy to have traveled down from Moscow for that.
My son is a graduate of Idaho.
As is Governor Palin.
Perhaps she can talk to the Governor of Idaho and arrange disaster relief or something. maybe the team could be exiled to Tattu Island at the far end of the Aleutians.
Let Week Two Begin!
Well there’s more college football coming up starting tomorrow night so let’s take a quick look at the new poll rankings. Once again the three polls involved here are the Writers’ Poll (AP), the Coaches’ Pol and CBSSports.com.
There were four upsets of Top 25 teams last week so there was a little shakeup in the rankings. The upsets included #24 (NR/25) Alabama over #9 (9/9) Clemson bay a score of 34-10, East Carolina over #17 (15/17) Virginia Tech 27-22, UCLA in overtime over #18 (18/18) Tennessee 27-24, and Bowling Green over #25 (NR/NR) Pittsburgh 27-17.
New ranks are:
#1(1/4) Southern California. Having beaten Virginia 52-7, the Trojans move up from the #3 (2/4)slot and have the week off to enjoy their lofty perch.
#2 (2/2) Georgia. Despite defeating Georgia Southern 45-21, the Bulldogs drop down from last week’s #1 (1/2) slot. This week they host Central Michigan.
#3 (3/1) Ohio State. The Buckeyes move down from #2 (3/1) after having beaten Youngstown State 43-0. One of the few shutouts recorded in week one. This week they host Ohio.
#4 (4/3) Oklahoma. The Sooners (#4 (4/3) last week beat Chattanooga 57-2. This week they host Cincinnati.
#5 (5/6) Florida. The Gators (#5 (5/6) in week one) beat up on Hawaii 56-10 last week. This week they host an opponent from closer to home—Miami (FLA).
#6 (7/5) Missouri. The Tigers (#6 (7/5) last week) beat then #20 Illinois in a high scoring 52-42 match. This week they host Southeast Missouri State.
#7 (6/8) LSU. The Tigers (#7 (6/8) last week) beat Appalachian State 41-13.This week they host Troy. POSTPONED until November 15.
#8 (8/7) West Virginia. The Mountaineers (starting in the identical position) beat Villanova 48-21 behind 5 TD passes by Mr. White. They are on the road this week at East Carolina.
#9 (10/10) Auburn. Moving up ever so slightly from #10 (11/11) after defeating Louisiana-Monroe 34-0. This week the Tigers host Southern Mississippi.
#10 (9/9) Texas. The Longhorns (#11 (10/10) last week) defeated Florida Atlantic 52-10.This week they travel to UTEP.
#11 (11/12) Wisconsin. The Badgers (#13 (12/14)) in week one) defeated Akron 38-17. This week they’ll face Marshall at home.
#12 (13/13) Texas Tech. The Red Raiders (#12 (14/13)) beat Eastern Washington 49-24 in week one and will now be traveling to Nevada.
#13 (17/17) Alabama. The Tide (#24 (NR/25)) upset Clemson last week by a score of 34-10. This week they host Tulane.
#14 (12/11) Kansas. The Jayhawks (#14 (13/12)) humbled Florida Atlantic last week 40-10. This week they’ll play Louisiana Tech at home.
#15 (tie) (14/15) Arizona State. The Sun Devils (#15 (16/16)) beat up on Northern Arizona in week one. This week the host Stanford.
#15 (tie) (15/14) Brigham Young. BYU (#16 (17/15)) last week downed Northern Iowa 41-17. This week they will be at Washington.
#17 (18/20) South Florida. The Bulls (#19 (21/23)) opened the year with a 56-7 drubbing of Tennessee-Martin. This week they play at the University of Central Florida.
#18 (16/18) Oregon. The Ducks (#21 (20/22) beat up on Washington 44-10. This week they host Utah State.
#19 (19/19) Penn State. The Nittany Lions (#22 (22/21)) picked up a victory over Coastal Carolina 66-10 in what was clearly a mismatch. This week Oregon State comes to Happy Valley.
#20 (20/16) Wake Forest. Wake Forest (#23 (23/19) defeated Baylor 41-13 on the road. They’ll be home this weekend against Mississippi.
#21 (21/21) Fresno State. FSU (NR (25/24)) has the week off to enjoy their win over Rutgers 24-7.
#22 (23/22) Utah. Unranked last week, Utah moves into the Top 25 by virtue of their 25-23 upset of Michigan. This week they host UNLV.
#23 (NR/24) UCLA. The Bruins were also unranked last week but their 27-24 overtime defeat of then #18 Tennessee has them moving up. They have this week off.
#24(tie) (25/23) Illinois. The Illini move down from #20 (19/20) after losing on the road to #6 Missouri 52-42. This week they will home to Eastern Illinois.
#24 (tie) (24/NR) South Carolina. Steve Spurrier’s Gamecocks shutout North Carolina State 34-0. They are on the road Thursday night against Vanderbilt.
NR (NR/25) East Carolina. The Pirates knocked off then #17 Virginia Tech in week one 27-22 to keep their way into the Top 25 of the CBSSports.com pol. Perhaps the writers and coaches don’t like their chances this week against #8 West Virginia…in Morgantown, WVa.
And there you have it. Week Two is underway tonight with #24 South Carolina playing at Vanderbilt.
There were four upsets of Top 25 teams last week so there was a little shakeup in the rankings. The upsets included #24 (NR/25) Alabama over #9 (9/9) Clemson bay a score of 34-10, East Carolina over #17 (15/17) Virginia Tech 27-22, UCLA in overtime over #18 (18/18) Tennessee 27-24, and Bowling Green over #25 (NR/NR) Pittsburgh 27-17.
New ranks are:
#1(1/4) Southern California. Having beaten Virginia 52-7, the Trojans move up from the #3 (2/4)slot and have the week off to enjoy their lofty perch.
#2 (2/2) Georgia. Despite defeating Georgia Southern 45-21, the Bulldogs drop down from last week’s #1 (1/2) slot. This week they host Central Michigan.
#3 (3/1) Ohio State. The Buckeyes move down from #2 (3/1) after having beaten Youngstown State 43-0. One of the few shutouts recorded in week one. This week they host Ohio.
#4 (4/3) Oklahoma. The Sooners (#4 (4/3) last week beat Chattanooga 57-2. This week they host Cincinnati.
#5 (5/6) Florida. The Gators (#5 (5/6) in week one) beat up on Hawaii 56-10 last week. This week they host an opponent from closer to home—Miami (FLA).
#6 (7/5) Missouri. The Tigers (#6 (7/5) last week) beat then #20 Illinois in a high scoring 52-42 match. This week they host Southeast Missouri State.
#7 (6/8) LSU. The Tigers (#7 (6/8) last week) beat Appalachian State 41-13.
#8 (8/7) West Virginia. The Mountaineers (starting in the identical position) beat Villanova 48-21 behind 5 TD passes by Mr. White. They are on the road this week at East Carolina.
#9 (10/10) Auburn. Moving up ever so slightly from #10 (11/11) after defeating Louisiana-Monroe 34-0. This week the Tigers host Southern Mississippi.
#10 (9/9) Texas. The Longhorns (#11 (10/10) last week) defeated Florida Atlantic 52-10.This week they travel to UTEP.
#11 (11/12) Wisconsin. The Badgers (#13 (12/14)) in week one) defeated Akron 38-17. This week they’ll face Marshall at home.
#12 (13/13) Texas Tech. The Red Raiders (#12 (14/13)) beat Eastern Washington 49-24 in week one and will now be traveling to Nevada.
#13 (17/17) Alabama. The Tide (#24 (NR/25)) upset Clemson last week by a score of 34-10. This week they host Tulane.
#14 (12/11) Kansas. The Jayhawks (#14 (13/12)) humbled Florida Atlantic last week 40-10. This week they’ll play Louisiana Tech at home.
#15 (tie) (14/15) Arizona State. The Sun Devils (#15 (16/16)) beat up on Northern Arizona in week one. This week the host Stanford.
#15 (tie) (15/14) Brigham Young. BYU (#16 (17/15)) last week downed Northern Iowa 41-17. This week they will be at Washington.
#17 (18/20) South Florida. The Bulls (#19 (21/23)) opened the year with a 56-7 drubbing of Tennessee-Martin. This week they play at the University of Central Florida.
#18 (16/18) Oregon. The Ducks (#21 (20/22) beat up on Washington 44-10. This week they host Utah State.
#19 (19/19) Penn State. The Nittany Lions (#22 (22/21)) picked up a victory over Coastal Carolina 66-10 in what was clearly a mismatch. This week Oregon State comes to Happy Valley.
#20 (20/16) Wake Forest. Wake Forest (#23 (23/19) defeated Baylor 41-13 on the road. They’ll be home this weekend against Mississippi.
#21 (21/21) Fresno State. FSU (NR (25/24)) has the week off to enjoy their win over Rutgers 24-7.
#22 (23/22) Utah. Unranked last week, Utah moves into the Top 25 by virtue of their 25-23 upset of Michigan. This week they host UNLV.
#23 (NR/24) UCLA. The Bruins were also unranked last week but their 27-24 overtime defeat of then #18 Tennessee has them moving up. They have this week off.
#24(tie) (25/23) Illinois. The Illini move down from #20 (19/20) after losing on the road to #6 Missouri 52-42. This week they will home to Eastern Illinois.
#24 (tie) (24/NR) South Carolina. Steve Spurrier’s Gamecocks shutout North Carolina State 34-0. They are on the road Thursday night against Vanderbilt.
NR (NR/25) East Carolina. The Pirates knocked off then #17 Virginia Tech in week one 27-22 to keep their way into the Top 25 of the CBSSports.com pol. Perhaps the writers and coaches don’t like their chances this week against #8 West Virginia…in Morgantown, WVa.
And there you have it. Week Two is underway tonight with #24 South Carolina playing at Vanderbilt.
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
Aerie planter bed
Well, I won’t post the pictures just yet. I only have two of the start this morning. Although I worked for over six hours today, I’m not real happy with my progress. It took me all morning to get the first row down as I struggled with the hard ground to make things level. I finally managed to get the first four rows in place before I quit. I originally thought I would need only five rows to get the walls of what is more a retaining bed instead of a raised bed up to the level of the lawn, but, having to dig down to level the first row has cost me some height. I’ll probably need a sixth row to attain the height I want and possibly a seventh for appearance.
I’m glad I’m not trying to do this with stone. I’d need to mine half the hillside to get enough! Besides, the longest and highest wall is to the downhill side away from the yard and house. No one will really see it.
Why did things go considerably slower than anticipated today? There are three primary reasons:
1- I didn’t get much sleep last night. I turned off the light at midnight and woke up at 3 AM. Despite trying to fall back to sleep, I could not and, as a result, I was out of bed at 3:40 AM. The cats were a bit surprised but wanted their breakfast anyway.
2- It was hot again today with the temperature reaching 89 degrees shortly after 5 PM. I worked two three-hour shifts with a three hour siesta (without the sleep) in between. Nine to noon and three to 6:30 PM. Despite drinking three 20 oz. Gatorades, two 20 oz bottles of water and a can of Diet Dr. Pepper with my lunch, I lost 5 pounds of water weight as I went through two soaking wet shirts and a pair of jeans that probably weighed a ton.
3- The freakin’ ground is like concrete! I spend a lot of time with the heavy Johnson bar just trying to loosen it up. I know you can just lift and drop that bar chisel point down to make it do its job, but it weighs 16 pounds. Try lifting that over and over and over again all day long. And when you have loosened the soil, the poor man’s backhoe (shovel) comes into play. Then there’s the stones which are anywhere from nickel –sized to dinner platter sized. And any one of them will turn that 16 pound chisel you’re lifting and dropping and lifting and dropping….. Did I mention there was an old wire fence buried here?
The sides of the box had to be excavated to a depth of upwards of 20 inches. And that was for the four foot sections. If I had gone with eight footers right off the bat, I would have been down closer to thirty inches.
Anyway, there are four courses of timbers out there now. They are held together with six inch pole barn spikes (60p with ring shanks). Each was driven with a five pound hand sledge. Lift up let it fall. Do not try to “drive” the spike. Just guide the hammer head to the top of the spike. Over and over and over again.
Did I mention the sun was shining brightly? The back of my neck is probably as red as a vine ripened tomato. It feels like it anyway.
My legs and arms are cramping up on me like they haven’t done since high school when we had two-a-day practices in late August. I used to wake up screaming in the middle of the night when my calves would tighten up. Of course, back then there was no Gatorade and I was too young to drink beer. Both will replace electrolytes but only the latter will (maybe) help me sleep.
Tomorrow promises to be another scorcher in the upper 80s.
Oh joy.
I’m glad I’m not trying to do this with stone. I’d need to mine half the hillside to get enough! Besides, the longest and highest wall is to the downhill side away from the yard and house. No one will really see it.
Why did things go considerably slower than anticipated today? There are three primary reasons:
1- I didn’t get much sleep last night. I turned off the light at midnight and woke up at 3 AM. Despite trying to fall back to sleep, I could not and, as a result, I was out of bed at 3:40 AM. The cats were a bit surprised but wanted their breakfast anyway.
2- It was hot again today with the temperature reaching 89 degrees shortly after 5 PM. I worked two three-hour shifts with a three hour siesta (without the sleep) in between. Nine to noon and three to 6:30 PM. Despite drinking three 20 oz. Gatorades, two 20 oz bottles of water and a can of Diet Dr. Pepper with my lunch, I lost 5 pounds of water weight as I went through two soaking wet shirts and a pair of jeans that probably weighed a ton.
3- The freakin’ ground is like concrete! I spend a lot of time with the heavy Johnson bar just trying to loosen it up. I know you can just lift and drop that bar chisel point down to make it do its job, but it weighs 16 pounds. Try lifting that over and over and over again all day long. And when you have loosened the soil, the poor man’s backhoe (shovel) comes into play. Then there’s the stones which are anywhere from nickel –sized to dinner platter sized. And any one of them will turn that 16 pound chisel you’re lifting and dropping and lifting and dropping….. Did I mention there was an old wire fence buried here?
The sides of the box had to be excavated to a depth of upwards of 20 inches. And that was for the four foot sections. If I had gone with eight footers right off the bat, I would have been down closer to thirty inches.
Anyway, there are four courses of timbers out there now. They are held together with six inch pole barn spikes (60p with ring shanks). Each was driven with a five pound hand sledge. Lift up let it fall. Do not try to “drive” the spike. Just guide the hammer head to the top of the spike. Over and over and over again.
Did I mention the sun was shining brightly? The back of my neck is probably as red as a vine ripened tomato. It feels like it anyway.
My legs and arms are cramping up on me like they haven’t done since high school when we had two-a-day practices in late August. I used to wake up screaming in the middle of the night when my calves would tighten up. Of course, back then there was no Gatorade and I was too young to drink beer. Both will replace electrolytes but only the latter will (maybe) help me sleep.
Tomorrow promises to be another scorcher in the upper 80s.
Oh joy.
Tuesday, September 02, 2008
The Idiossey
Iowahawk has penned: The Idiossey The Not-Really-That-Epic Poem of Obamacles.
Go on over and read this masterpiece.
UPDATE: Oops! Link went awry. Fixed now.
I should mention I got there by way of The Barrister at Maggie's Farm.
Go on over and read this masterpiece.
UPDATE: Oops! Link went awry. Fixed now.
I should mention I got there by way of The Barrister at Maggie's Farm.
Back to work
I started working on another raised bed for next year's vegetable garden today. This one will be constructed primarily from landscape timbers i picked up at the local lumber yard. I bouhgt 20 of these timbers this morning and then spent the rest of the day preparing the area for their installation.
It was a little tough going as I had to pull many goldenrod plants out and since they spread by their roots, that meant a slow steady pull to get the root out. It's a lot like tying to pull an night crawler out of the ground. Jerk too hard and the plant (worm) rips in two above the ground. A slow steady pull will get the root and, if you're lucky, the runners as well. There were root sections of the multiflora rose that had to come up too and they are woody SOBs.
Once I had a sizable area cleared (I want this bed to be 8' by 16') I started to work on the soil with my shovel and Johnson bar. (The Johnson bar is the long, black 16 pound iron bar with a chisel on one end and a tamping pad on the other.) I discovered an old section of fence buried a few inches beneath the soil and rocks and had a devil of a time getting most of it up. I say "most" because I'm sure some is still in there yet. It was rusted pretty good and every time I would try to pull a piece out it would snap.
The soil is that fill mix of shale and clay and, while pulling the weeds up loosened some of it, much of stuff is packed hard as concrete.
Did I mention it was sunny and hot out there? The temperature soared up to 87 degrees today. Thankfully the humidity was down around 60 percent. My shirt was soaked and water flowed off the bill of my cap. I would work for an hour or and hour and a half and then take a Gatorade break. I even took a short siesta break between noon and two in the afternoon. Even so, I still shed 4 pounds from this morning to when I quit to shower and have dinner. It was nearly all water weight, however, and will mostly come back in a day or two.
Tomorrow, I get to lay out the first course of timbers and start building the wall. There will be some cutting involved as the sides will be stepped into the hillside.
I'll try to remember to take pictures as I work.
It was a little tough going as I had to pull many goldenrod plants out and since they spread by their roots, that meant a slow steady pull to get the root out. It's a lot like tying to pull an night crawler out of the ground. Jerk too hard and the plant (worm) rips in two above the ground. A slow steady pull will get the root and, if you're lucky, the runners as well. There were root sections of the multiflora rose that had to come up too and they are woody SOBs.
Once I had a sizable area cleared (I want this bed to be 8' by 16') I started to work on the soil with my shovel and Johnson bar. (The Johnson bar is the long, black 16 pound iron bar with a chisel on one end and a tamping pad on the other.) I discovered an old section of fence buried a few inches beneath the soil and rocks and had a devil of a time getting most of it up. I say "most" because I'm sure some is still in there yet. It was rusted pretty good and every time I would try to pull a piece out it would snap.
The soil is that fill mix of shale and clay and, while pulling the weeds up loosened some of it, much of stuff is packed hard as concrete.
Did I mention it was sunny and hot out there? The temperature soared up to 87 degrees today. Thankfully the humidity was down around 60 percent. My shirt was soaked and water flowed off the bill of my cap. I would work for an hour or and hour and a half and then take a Gatorade break. I even took a short siesta break between noon and two in the afternoon. Even so, I still shed 4 pounds from this morning to when I quit to shower and have dinner. It was nearly all water weight, however, and will mostly come back in a day or two.
Tomorrow, I get to lay out the first course of timbers and start building the wall. There will be some cutting involved as the sides will be stepped into the hillside.
I'll try to remember to take pictures as I work.
Monday, September 01, 2008
Random thoughts
On the selection of Sarah Palin for VP and reaction of same.
I've seen some pretty nasty things being said on the interwebs about the Governor Palin. Ranging from her young son Trig to her ex-brother-in-law's firing from the State Police and the firing of the head of the Alaskan State police. (On the latter issue, if someone tasered my 9 (or 11, I've seen both) year-old nephew, threatened my sister, and said my father would be shot if he hired a lawyer to help sis, and I owned a commercial fishing boat with all of the Bering Sea at my disposal...well, firing would be the least of his worries.)
I've also seen a lot of poo-pooing of Governor Palin's experience and education. A degree in Journalism from Idaho University is a bit different from the Ivy League education and law degrees of many of our most recent office holders and seekers. I happen to think it's just what we need. Someone who is not a lawyer and who will bring a refreshing, new, outside the box kind of thinking to the business of the Federal Government.
Her life experiences to this point are worth far more than a piece of paper in a frame on the wall.
The elites can't believe someone who didn't attend an Ivy League school, someone who didn't pursue a law degree, someone who didn't obtain a Rhodes Scholarship can be bright and intelligent.
Yet they bring their cars to mechanics, hire plumbers to fix their leaks, electricians to do their sound systems, masons to build their patios and swimming pools, etc. All of whom are experts in their fields and know far more about those fields than the elites. And many of those folks hold no college degree.
Intelligence is not conferred by a piece of paper. We seem to have forgotten that somewhere in the '60s and '70s.
I've seen some pretty nasty things being said on the interwebs about the Governor Palin. Ranging from her young son Trig to her ex-brother-in-law's firing from the State Police and the firing of the head of the Alaskan State police. (On the latter issue, if someone tasered my 9 (or 11, I've seen both) year-old nephew, threatened my sister, and said my father would be shot if he hired a lawyer to help sis, and I owned a commercial fishing boat with all of the Bering Sea at my disposal...well, firing would be the least of his worries.)
I've also seen a lot of poo-pooing of Governor Palin's experience and education. A degree in Journalism from Idaho University is a bit different from the Ivy League education and law degrees of many of our most recent office holders and seekers. I happen to think it's just what we need. Someone who is not a lawyer and who will bring a refreshing, new, outside the box kind of thinking to the business of the Federal Government.
Her life experiences to this point are worth far more than a piece of paper in a frame on the wall.
The elites can't believe someone who didn't attend an Ivy League school, someone who didn't pursue a law degree, someone who didn't obtain a Rhodes Scholarship can be bright and intelligent.
Yet they bring their cars to mechanics, hire plumbers to fix their leaks, electricians to do their sound systems, masons to build their patios and swimming pools, etc. All of whom are experts in their fields and know far more about those fields than the elites. And many of those folks hold no college degree.
Intelligence is not conferred by a piece of paper. We seem to have forgotten that somewhere in the '60s and '70s.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
What the hell?
What the hell is wrong with the folks who broadcast news/weather on TV?
Flipping dials just now (okay, pushing buttons) I went to NBC, ABC and the Weather Channel at the 6:30 PM. In each instance there was a team of broadcasters on the ground in New Orleans all saying the same thing, "This place is looking like a ghost town."
Well perhaps it's because the people who live there have learned a lesson from Katrina. It certainly seems Mayor Naggin learned something.
There's a mandatory evacuation in progress so what the F*CK are you jerkwads doing on the streets of the city. Especially, as one of them announced, the storm is moving more quickly than predicted. (That's going to bring it on shore early Monday morning...less than 12 hours away. On the other hand, it will not have time to strengthen beyond the Category 3 it has already reached.)
Flipping dials just now (okay, pushing buttons) I went to NBC, ABC and the Weather Channel at the 6:30 PM. In each instance there was a team of broadcasters on the ground in New Orleans all saying the same thing, "This place is looking like a ghost town."
Well perhaps it's because the people who live there have learned a lesson from Katrina. It certainly seems Mayor Naggin learned something.
There's a mandatory evacuation in progress so what the F*CK are you jerkwads doing on the streets of the city. Especially, as one of them announced, the storm is moving more quickly than predicted. (That's going to bring it on shore early Monday morning...less than 12 hours away. On the other hand, it will not have time to strengthen beyond the Category 3 it has already reached.)
Friday, August 29, 2008
A little house cleaning
I've been so busy doing next to nothing that I failed to notice that one fine blogger has moved her abode. I met this fine lady at the blogger get together back in May and never linked her old site for some reason.
I didn't get to talk with her much during the meet but she had a really cool camera and was taking lots of pictures. Visiting her site, I found even more lovely pictures...especially after her vacation to Maine...an area she clearly loves.
Anyway, her new home is now listed on the sidebar to the right. It's called Seaweed Chronicles.
(In looking around I'm not sure she moved all her photos to albums on the side or not so here's a link to her old site Shamrocketship just in case.)
I didn't get to talk with her much during the meet but she had a really cool camera and was taking lots of pictures. Visiting her site, I found even more lovely pictures...especially after her vacation to Maine...an area she clearly loves.
Anyway, her new home is now listed on the sidebar to the right. It's called Seaweed Chronicles.
(In looking around I'm not sure she moved all her photos to albums on the side or not so here's a link to her old site Shamrocketship just in case.)
Did I mention...
...that it's just me and the three cats for the next two weeks?
At least Chester is not quite this aggressive as the spokescat with the morning wake-up call as this:
more animals
Still, I'll be keeping the bedroom door closed.
At least Chester is not quite this aggressive as the spokescat with the morning wake-up call as this:
more animals
Still, I'll be keeping the bedroom door closed.
All alone am I...except for 3 cats
Terry and I awoke during the night to the sound of heavy rains as yet more remnants of Fay passed through the area. It had drizzled off and on most of yesterday and continued into the evening. After we got out of bed to the tune of Chester's plaintive pleas, we checked the weather and the bulk of the rain had excited to the east. This was good news as Terry was to be on the road to Cincinnati this morning. She's heading to Louisville for an Embroiderer's Guild of America convention that starts on Sunday.
Unfortunately for me, I stayed behind to mind the cats and see if I can get any work done on building another raised bed for next summer's planned gardens.
Terry wasn't gone more than an hour when the drizzle and mist returned accompanied by some stiff, cold (not chilly--cold!) winds. The hillsides are shrouded in clouds and the drizzle won't let up. Them temperature has not risen above 62 degrees and I half hope the cloud cover holds or we might have an overnight low in the very low 40s. It's supposed to warm up during the week, but then again, it was supposed to stop raining and be in the low 70s today.
So Terry's on her way to Louisville with a stop outside Cincinnati tonight. From there she'll be heading to NJ to pick up her Mom to go to a military reunion in Gettysburg. (Dad belonged to this group and even after his passing Mom has continued to attend their annual gatherings. This, however, may be their last as so many of the Polar Bears have passed away or are too infirm to attend.) Most of the fellows still around are in their mid to late 80s.
Just me and the three cats for two weeks.
Unfortunately for me, I stayed behind to mind the cats and see if I can get any work done on building another raised bed for next summer's planned gardens.
Terry wasn't gone more than an hour when the drizzle and mist returned accompanied by some stiff, cold (not chilly--cold!) winds. The hillsides are shrouded in clouds and the drizzle won't let up. Them temperature has not risen above 62 degrees and I half hope the cloud cover holds or we might have an overnight low in the very low 40s. It's supposed to warm up during the week, but then again, it was supposed to stop raining and be in the low 70s today.
So Terry's on her way to Louisville with a stop outside Cincinnati tonight. From there she'll be heading to NJ to pick up her Mom to go to a military reunion in Gettysburg. (Dad belonged to this group and even after his passing Mom has continued to attend their annual gatherings. This, however, may be their last as so many of the Polar Bears have passed away or are too infirm to attend.) Most of the fellows still around are in their mid to late 80s.
Just me and the three cats for two weeks.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Top 25+ going into Week 1
The start of the season always means teams are equally undefeated and unscored upon. But after the first week only half the teams are undefeated and many fewer are unscored upon.
Some of those which lose will be found in the lofty perches of the Top 25.
According to the AP Writers’ Poll the teams currently in that position are:
(Numbers in parentheses are for the Coaches Poll and CBSSports.com Poll respectively. I'm not making any predictions after the Michigan vs Appalachian State debacle in last year's week one.)
1 Georgia (1/2) hosts Georgia Southern (Div II)
2 Ohio State (3/1) hosts Youngstown State (Div II)
3 Southern California (2/4) at Virginia
4 Oklahoma (4/3) hosts Chattanooga (Div II)
5 Florida (5/6) hosts Hawaii
6 Missouri (7/5) hosts #20 Illinois
7 LSU (6/8) hosts Appalachian State (Div II)
8 West Virginia (8/7) hosts Villanova (Div II)
9 Clemson (9/9) hosts #24 Alabama
10 Auburn (11/11) hosts Louisiana-Monroe
11 Texas (10/10) hosts Florida Atlantic
12 Texas Tech (14/13) hosts Eastern Washington (Div II)
13 Wisconsin (12/14) hosts Akron
14 Kansas (13/12) hosts Florida International
15 Arizona State (16/16) hosts Northern Arizona (Div II)
16 Brigham Young (17/15) hosts Northern Iowa (Div II)
17 Virginia Tech (15/17) at East Carolina
18 Tennessee (18/18) at UCLA
19 South Florida (21/23) hosts Tennessee-Martin (Div II)
20 Illinois (19/20) at # 6 Missouri
21 Oregon (20/ 22) hosts Washington
22 Penn State (22/21) hosts Coastal Carolina (Div III)
23 Wake Forest (23/19) at Baylor
24 Alabama (NR/25) at #9 Clemson
25 Pittsburgh (NR/NR) hosts Bowling Green
NR Michigan (24/NR) hosts Utah
NR Fresno State (25/24) at Rutgers
Note how many of these top 25 teams are playing at home...against Div II (or Div III...Coastal Carolina? Joe Pa what are you doing?) competition. There are only two games pitting top 25s against one another: 20 Illinois (19/20) at # 6 Missouri and 24 Alabama (NR/25) at #9 Clemson.
I'm looking forward to the Fresno State at Rutgers game. (RU is favored by 5.5.) It will go a long way to making or breaking each team's season. A win in this game will tell a lot about where the teams are physically and mentally. A loss could well doom the team to also rans. Sounds harsh, but that's the name of the game. Neither team should be worried about offense, despite losing their #1 rusher to the NFL. Defense will tell in this game.
Some of those which lose will be found in the lofty perches of the Top 25.
According to the AP Writers’ Poll the teams currently in that position are:
(Numbers in parentheses are for the Coaches Poll and CBSSports.com Poll respectively. I'm not making any predictions after the Michigan vs Appalachian State debacle in last year's week one.)
1 Georgia (1/2) hosts Georgia Southern (Div II)
2 Ohio State (3/1) hosts Youngstown State (Div II)
3 Southern California (2/4) at Virginia
4 Oklahoma (4/3) hosts Chattanooga (Div II)
5 Florida (5/6) hosts Hawaii
6 Missouri (7/5) hosts #20 Illinois
7 LSU (6/8) hosts Appalachian State (Div II)
8 West Virginia (8/7) hosts Villanova (Div II)
9 Clemson (9/9) hosts #24 Alabama
10 Auburn (11/11) hosts Louisiana-Monroe
11 Texas (10/10) hosts Florida Atlantic
12 Texas Tech (14/13) hosts Eastern Washington (Div II)
13 Wisconsin (12/14) hosts Akron
14 Kansas (13/12) hosts Florida International
15 Arizona State (16/16) hosts Northern Arizona (Div II)
16 Brigham Young (17/15) hosts Northern Iowa (Div II)
17 Virginia Tech (15/17) at East Carolina
18 Tennessee (18/18) at UCLA
19 South Florida (21/23) hosts Tennessee-Martin (Div II)
20 Illinois (19/20) at # 6 Missouri
21 Oregon (20/ 22) hosts Washington
22 Penn State (22/21) hosts Coastal Carolina (Div III)
23 Wake Forest (23/19) at Baylor
24 Alabama (NR/25) at #9 Clemson
25 Pittsburgh (NR/NR) hosts Bowling Green
NR Michigan (24/NR) hosts Utah
NR Fresno State (25/24) at Rutgers
Note how many of these top 25 teams are playing at home...against Div II (or Div III...Coastal Carolina? Joe Pa what are you doing?) competition. There are only two games pitting top 25s against one another: 20 Illinois (19/20) at # 6 Missouri and 24 Alabama (NR/25) at #9 Clemson.
I'm looking forward to the Fresno State at Rutgers game. (RU is favored by 5.5.) It will go a long way to making or breaking each team's season. A win in this game will tell a lot about where the teams are physically and mentally. A loss could well doom the team to also rans. Sounds harsh, but that's the name of the game. Neither team should be worried about offense, despite losing their #1 rusher to the NFL. Defense will tell in this game.
Bottom trolling
As I was saying, the college football season opens tonight. (In fact, by the time I get to post this, it will have been well underway. Four games were slated to kick-off at 7:00 PM and another bunch start at 7:30 PM more at 8:00 PM and one at 9:00 PM. All times EDT.)
That means the silliness with Top 25 Polls has started. There are three major polls out there (four if you count the BCS which doesn't kick in until later in the season): The AP Poll (allegedly from knowledgeable and fair writers), The Coaches Poll, and the CBSSports.com Poll which uses the first two and then throws their own curves in here and there to rank all 120 Div FBS teams. (It’s always fun to look at the complete rankings from time to time and see just who ranks as the worst. Currently the cellar dwellers, along with last year’s final ranking and record, are:
111 Middle Tennessee 102 , 5-7
112 UAB 112, 2-10
113 Western Kentucky 99, 7-5
114 Northern Illinois 113, 2-10
115 Army 109, 3-9
116 Eastern Michigan 93, 4-8
117 Idaho 120, 1-11
118 North Texas 115, 2-10
119 Utah State 111, 2-10
120 Florida International 119, 1-11
You will note that several of these teams were at the bottom at the end of last season. I know for a fact that if I went back five or six years Idaho would appear down here in every single one of those years. I think you have to go back to pre-2000 for a winning season at Idaho.
It’s just sad to see Army listed down here….again.
The only real “new comers” to the list are #113 Western Kentucky and # 116 Eastern Michigan. I’m not sure how the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers got ranked last year in the 99th slot with a 7-5 record unless it was due to the fact they played many Division II schools in their first transition year into Division I. They open this season against Indiana.
The Eastern Michigan Eagles are opening against the Division II Indiana State. A team that was 1-11 last year in the Missouri Valley Conference.
If you are a graduate or student at any one of these institutions and a football fan...my condolences.
(For what it's worth, my son holds a degree from Idaho. He enrolled there in 2002 and graduated in 2007 with one year in Iraq courtesy of the Marines. At least he didn't have to watch the Vandals play that year too. A guy can take only so much suffering.)
That means the silliness with Top 25 Polls has started. There are three major polls out there (four if you count the BCS which doesn't kick in until later in the season): The AP Poll (allegedly from knowledgeable and fair writers), The Coaches Poll, and the CBSSports.com Poll which uses the first two and then throws their own curves in here and there to rank all 120 Div FBS teams. (It’s always fun to look at the complete rankings from time to time and see just who ranks as the worst. Currently the cellar dwellers, along with last year’s final ranking and record, are:
111 Middle Tennessee 102 , 5-7
112 UAB 112, 2-10
113 Western Kentucky 99, 7-5
114 Northern Illinois 113, 2-10
115 Army 109, 3-9
116 Eastern Michigan 93, 4-8
117 Idaho 120, 1-11
118 North Texas 115, 2-10
119 Utah State 111, 2-10
120 Florida International 119, 1-11
You will note that several of these teams were at the bottom at the end of last season. I know for a fact that if I went back five or six years Idaho would appear down here in every single one of those years. I think you have to go back to pre-2000 for a winning season at Idaho.
It’s just sad to see Army listed down here….again.
The only real “new comers” to the list are #113 Western Kentucky and # 116 Eastern Michigan. I’m not sure how the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers got ranked last year in the 99th slot with a 7-5 record unless it was due to the fact they played many Division II schools in their first transition year into Division I. They open this season against Indiana.
The Eastern Michigan Eagles are opening against the Division II Indiana State. A team that was 1-11 last year in the Missouri Valley Conference.
If you are a graduate or student at any one of these institutions and a football fan...my condolences.
(For what it's worth, my son holds a degree from Idaho. He enrolled there in 2002 and graduated in 2007 with one year in Iraq courtesy of the Marines. At least he didn't have to watch the Vandals play that year too. A guy can take only so much suffering.)
Holy Crow! I almost forgot....
Tonight is the start of the college football season! Yeah!
I’m looking forward to seeing if my Scarlet Knights can get passed the Ray Rice and put together a decent year. If Mike Teel, Kenny Britt and Tiquan Underwood can connect frequently enough it will open the ground game for RBs Mason Robinson and Kordell Young (who missed most of last season due to injury).
The Knights lack the experience and depth on the line to compete with West Virginia and make a run for the Big East title but I’m hoping they can end up ahead of tough Pittsburgh, South Florida and Cincinnati squads. Connecticut and Louisville (!? How the mighty have fallen. And quickly too!) seem to need rebuilding and Syracuse—well—they are not the Syracuse of 30 years ago. Here’s hoping they are not the Syracuse of the last two years.
There’s a lot of jaw wagging out there about the best conferences as bulletin boards and such are full of people who are…well, full of it. Some say the PAC 10 is best. Some argue for the SEC or ACC. And some pick the Big 10. Although, with Ohio State’s showing the last two championships and the quality of play among many of the other members –ahem, Michigan—the number of folks in the latter group, i.e. Big 10 supporters, has dwindled.
One thing is consistent, however, and that is the Big East gets treated worst than Rodney Dangerfield (you see this in the polls too) and that is just plain and simple wrong. A quick glance at the post season play the last two years would and should provide ample evidence the quality of play occurring on the fields of the Big East. I can’t find the numbers at the moment but over the last two years I believe the Big East is something like 10-1 in bowl games. I’ll concede that the bowl matchups are done in a peculiar way to introduce what folks think of as parity and thus provide a competitive game or in the name of drawing fans to attend and party in the host city, but that just proves my point. In the last two years those who matched up the teams felt the Big East wasn’t quite as good as it turned out to be. Big East teams beat up on their opponents with fairly good regularity.
I will also concede that the Big East took a huge hit when three teams deserted for the ACC (Miami, Virginia Tech and Boston College) and they have yet to find competitive opponents in the non-conference games that they were forced to schedule as a result, but that will soon change. The cause of the scheduling difficulty was the timing. Most schools arrange their non-conference games years in advance and were locked in when the Big East as it now is came calling. Ironically, the Big East’s success on the field may make it difficult for them to schedule competitive teams seeking to pad their won-loss record. Better to take a chance with a Division II school like, oh, say Appalachian State. (How’d that work out for you Michigan?)
I’ll be looking forward to lots of Big East victories in the next four or five weeks as they teams take on non-conference opponents.
Anyway… College football starts tonight and by Tuesday, half the teams that play will be losers and half will be undefeated.
I’m looking forward to seeing if my Scarlet Knights can get passed the Ray Rice and put together a decent year. If Mike Teel, Kenny Britt and Tiquan Underwood can connect frequently enough it will open the ground game for RBs Mason Robinson and Kordell Young (who missed most of last season due to injury).
The Knights lack the experience and depth on the line to compete with West Virginia and make a run for the Big East title but I’m hoping they can end up ahead of tough Pittsburgh, South Florida and Cincinnati squads. Connecticut and Louisville (!? How the mighty have fallen. And quickly too!) seem to need rebuilding and Syracuse—well—they are not the Syracuse of 30 years ago. Here’s hoping they are not the Syracuse of the last two years.
There’s a lot of jaw wagging out there about the best conferences as bulletin boards and such are full of people who are…well, full of it. Some say the PAC 10 is best. Some argue for the SEC or ACC. And some pick the Big 10. Although, with Ohio State’s showing the last two championships and the quality of play among many of the other members –ahem, Michigan—the number of folks in the latter group, i.e. Big 10 supporters, has dwindled.
One thing is consistent, however, and that is the Big East gets treated worst than Rodney Dangerfield (you see this in the polls too) and that is just plain and simple wrong. A quick glance at the post season play the last two years would and should provide ample evidence the quality of play occurring on the fields of the Big East. I can’t find the numbers at the moment but over the last two years I believe the Big East is something like 10-1 in bowl games. I’ll concede that the bowl matchups are done in a peculiar way to introduce what folks think of as parity and thus provide a competitive game or in the name of drawing fans to attend and party in the host city, but that just proves my point. In the last two years those who matched up the teams felt the Big East wasn’t quite as good as it turned out to be. Big East teams beat up on their opponents with fairly good regularity.
I will also concede that the Big East took a huge hit when three teams deserted for the ACC (Miami, Virginia Tech and Boston College) and they have yet to find competitive opponents in the non-conference games that they were forced to schedule as a result, but that will soon change. The cause of the scheduling difficulty was the timing. Most schools arrange their non-conference games years in advance and were locked in when the Big East as it now is came calling. Ironically, the Big East’s success on the field may make it difficult for them to schedule competitive teams seeking to pad their won-loss record. Better to take a chance with a Division II school like, oh, say Appalachian State. (How’d that work out for you Michigan?)
I’ll be looking forward to lots of Big East victories in the next four or five weeks as they teams take on non-conference opponents.
Anyway… College football starts tonight and by Tuesday, half the teams that play will be losers and half will be undefeated.
Party Unity
At least they all seem to agree on something.
This is something else! If it is not a McCain ad, it should be.
(From HotAir via Instapundit and Ann Althouse)
This is something else! If it is not a McCain ad, it should be.
(From HotAir via Instapundit and Ann Althouse)
Ruby-throated Hummingbirds
No, no pictures of them, but they are everywhere today. I've three feeders out and each is about 10 yards from the other. One is on the front porch, one on the side porch and the third is on the edge of the lawn. We've had 5 or 6 hummers for about a month now and I supposed the population bump was the result of fledglings joining mom and pop at the feeders along, perhaps with a few aunts and uncles. With today's cold temperatures and drizzly conditions, activity at the feeders has skyrocketed. Watching them zoom back and froth chasing one another from feeder to feeder and perch to perch can make you dizzy. There have to be far more than six little birds out there. At times there are five swarming about one feeder and, since it's impossible to see all three feeders at once, I'm sure there are more at the other feeders. Even when I have two feeders within my field of view and can clearly see six birds at once, there's a good chance there are more in the trees, on the telephone wire or at the third feeder I can't see.
I wonder if some of the activity isn't from new south-bound birds dropping by to get stoked up on sugar water. Perhaps they can hear the whir of their brothers' wings on a supersonic wavelength and home in on the sound expecting to find food nearby.
If it stays cool like this (the temp has dropped another degree to 56 degrees), they'll take the first burst of wind heading south and disappear. Last year all the hummers were gone by the end of September.
I wonder if some of the activity isn't from new south-bound birds dropping by to get stoked up on sugar water. Perhaps they can hear the whir of their brothers' wings on a supersonic wavelength and home in on the sound expecting to find food nearby.
If it stays cool like this (the temp has dropped another degree to 56 degrees), they'll take the first burst of wind heading south and disappear. Last year all the hummers were gone by the end of September.
There and back again
It was a rather uneventful trip up to the Bolt Hole and back after I had the trailer inspected.
The Tundra handled the load with ease, although it did require twice as much fuel than it would coming back without the load. (10 mpg vs 19 mpg)
The trailer tracks very nicely and I only have to be sure of remembering to swing a little wide on the sharp turns of an intersection.
And backing up? Pshaw! A snap! The handling was extremely responsive and, with my hand on the bottom of the steering wheel so that when it went left the back of the trailer did too, I was able to back the trailer into the barn in one pass. And considering that requires backing from across the street, through the gate and then, perhaps to the left about 15-20 yards as I move across the lawn (which may be 30-35 yards wide at this point, I feel quite proud of my handling this task with only the aide of the truck's mirrors and a pair of belt-on mirror extensions. It seems the Tundra's standard mirrors are a bit wider than the Silverado's were. I can almost get by using them alone but the extensions make it even better and I can see the back corner of the trailer.
Having parked and unhitched the trailer by 4:30 PM I looked around the yard and realized the grass didn't need cutting so I decided to head back to the Aerie rather than sack out for the night. And that's what I did.
I stopped along the way to pick up my NY hunting/fishing license for the coming season and to do some window shopping. Having to drop $280 for a non-resident all-round sportsman's tag and a bear tag (despite having to pay some $3500 in county and school taxes) I decided to hold off on any purchases.
I got to listen to the Mets' game for much of the ride home. I always find it amazing that I can pick up WFAN as I drive through Cortland and Ithaca in the evening hours. I got back to the Aerie just as the Mets went ahead 6-3 in the 8th inning and quickly tuned in the game on the radio. (I usually "watch" the game on the Gameday play-by-play available on the Mets'' website.) For once the bullpen didn't blow it. Man, Delgado has been HOT!!!
Anyway, I'm glad I decided to drive back last night because this morning we were awakened by the sound of rain falling gently outside. As late as Monday, the forecast was that the remnants of Fay wouldn't reach here until late today but she arrived early. The rain isn't heavy by any means but that doesn't really matter. A light misting on a well used road can be almost as dangerous as a heavy downpour. The oils and grease from passing cars and trucks rises to the surface and makes them pretty slick. And once off the paved road...well, clay and water make for some very slippery mud. If I had stayed overnight, I would have had to contend with those conditions on the way home.
Speaking of the weather...the temperature is currently 57 degrees outside. On August 28. It is effing cold out for August. And this rain is coming from the south? I did my part yesterday folks. Nearly 500 miles in a 5.7L V-8 pickup and half of it was while towing a trailer!!! We're talking serious carbon foot print here. So where the hell is my global warming?!? I'm going to go get another cup of HOT coffee.
The Tundra handled the load with ease, although it did require twice as much fuel than it would coming back without the load. (10 mpg vs 19 mpg)
The trailer tracks very nicely and I only have to be sure of remembering to swing a little wide on the sharp turns of an intersection.
And backing up? Pshaw! A snap! The handling was extremely responsive and, with my hand on the bottom of the steering wheel so that when it went left the back of the trailer did too, I was able to back the trailer into the barn in one pass. And considering that requires backing from across the street, through the gate and then, perhaps to the left about 15-20 yards as I move across the lawn (which may be 30-35 yards wide at this point, I feel quite proud of my handling this task with only the aide of the truck's mirrors and a pair of belt-on mirror extensions. It seems the Tundra's standard mirrors are a bit wider than the Silverado's were. I can almost get by using them alone but the extensions make it even better and I can see the back corner of the trailer.
Having parked and unhitched the trailer by 4:30 PM I looked around the yard and realized the grass didn't need cutting so I decided to head back to the Aerie rather than sack out for the night. And that's what I did.
I stopped along the way to pick up my NY hunting/fishing license for the coming season and to do some window shopping. Having to drop $280 for a non-resident all-round sportsman's tag and a bear tag (despite having to pay some $3500 in county and school taxes) I decided to hold off on any purchases.
I got to listen to the Mets' game for much of the ride home. I always find it amazing that I can pick up WFAN as I drive through Cortland and Ithaca in the evening hours. I got back to the Aerie just as the Mets went ahead 6-3 in the 8th inning and quickly tuned in the game on the radio. (I usually "watch" the game on the Gameday play-by-play available on the Mets'' website.) For once the bullpen didn't blow it. Man, Delgado has been HOT!!!
Anyway, I'm glad I decided to drive back last night because this morning we were awakened by the sound of rain falling gently outside. As late as Monday, the forecast was that the remnants of Fay wouldn't reach here until late today but she arrived early. The rain isn't heavy by any means but that doesn't really matter. A light misting on a well used road can be almost as dangerous as a heavy downpour. The oils and grease from passing cars and trucks rises to the surface and makes them pretty slick. And once off the paved road...well, clay and water make for some very slippery mud. If I had stayed overnight, I would have had to contend with those conditions on the way home.
Speaking of the weather...the temperature is currently 57 degrees outside. On August 28. It is effing cold out for August. And this rain is coming from the south? I did my part yesterday folks. Nearly 500 miles in a 5.7L V-8 pickup and half of it was while towing a trailer!!! We're talking serious carbon foot print here. So where the hell is my global warming?!? I'm going to go get another cup of HOT coffee.
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