Range-rover
Veteran
Did you buy a outdoor grill yet, every house needs one, I mean
nothing like cooking on a outdoor grill.
nothing like cooking on a outdoor grill.
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
Bob,
I have a stainless steel propane grill that was designed to be used on a boat. There is a rod holder attachment that I never bought.
I have owned this grill for many decades. It is small and just about right for two people. In the future I will be likely getting another larger grill.
A lot of my stuff is old but good.
Cal
Nokton48
Veteran
We have a large gas grill and a Traeger Pellet Smoker. The lazy slacker in me can not smoke wood chips, the pellets are 100% success.
And a Pergula my wife wanted a swing so that came with it as a kit
Your idea about decorating the knarly tree is a great one. Photograph it under different conditions
And a Pergula my wife wanted a swing so that came with it as a kit
Your idea about decorating the knarly tree is a great one. Photograph it under different conditions
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
Dan,
Making a dead tree a beautiful arbor for Wisteria surely will be a thing of beauty.
That pellet smoker I'll keep in mind. My fishing buddy use to smoke bluefish that were 5-7 pound schoolies.
Some people would say, "Better than sex."
Once smoked they freeze well.
Cal
Range-rover
Veteran
That's good grills are great.
Phil_F_NM
Camera hacker
Smoked bluefish? No. Smoked wild Alaskan salmon is getting closer. Grilled ahi is closer still. Grilled Halibut, even closer than that, but I still don't know if they compare....
Phil Forrest
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
Phil,
My friend Fell-ish-A came up with that expression because she had a boyfriend who was a deep sea fisherman with a boat.
In the context she presented the expression was that her boyfriend and his friends were such avid fishermen that they thought eating fresh Tuna or Mako as better than sex.
I leave to you and your imagination the many interesting backstories that this invokes.
As a biker, I know in a ways it is like an eating disorder. We crave carbs, we love protein, and we savor fruits and vegetables. When training I can eat as much as I want with no penalty. Out in the Hamptons I went to a birthday party and the entire crowd was bikers. What a food feast.
I remember at Grumman, Mike a coworker said, "You are so skinny" one day as a passing remark.
"Mike, and you are fat and bald," I replied.
"I didn't mean to insult or offend," Mike said.
"Neither did I," I replied.
We both laughed at our bluntness.
Anyways I love both sex and food. Nothing wrong with that. LOL.
Cal
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
Saturday we went to the Stormville Flea Market which is held at a small airport. There was a lot to see, and this was kinda big.
It was about a half hour drive away, but it seemed it was a mostly white crowd, and I saw only a few people of color. Still I felt right at home because I have become a hill-billy.
I talked with a local woman while waiting on a food line. She asked me where I drove up from; and when I mentioned Peekskill, she mentioned that she once lived there.
I brought up how we moved from Madhattan, and how much I love the better quality of life; then she mentioned how things have changed.
At one time everybody knew each other, but that's not so anymore, and the city folk it seems bring their bad behaviors and problems with them she complained.
She was being honest, and I understood what she meant. I believe she understood why I am happier, less bothered, and feel good about being away from the city.
I guess I have become a country boy and am not so ghetto anymore. LOL.
At Stormville one of "Maggie's" followers recognized her and there was a photo op for the follower.
On our way back to Peekskill we stopped at Peekskill Coffee to get a Chi Latte. We sat outside in the closed off street that is next to "The Flat Iron Building" which rests on a triangular block.
Nearby at another table was a hipster couple, but when they got up to leave they stopped by to say hello.
"You must be the Accidental Icon?" Maggie was asked.
Fred is also a digital influencer who promotes Peekskill, the arts, and knows all the history and smut of Peekskill. He moved from Brooklyn about 4 years ago. Amanda is his wife.
After some talking, I offer them to sit down with us, and I learned a lot about the politics, the smut, and all the big city planning that is going on.
"I was just minding my own business," I say, and then I kinda meet someone rather influential. Anyways they were an interesting couple, and we talked for quit a while.
Now it seems like we just got top listed and will be meeting and mingling with the power brokers. One would be interested in Devil Christian. This guy who lived in California made it big with 3D printing and sold that business.
He is now a venture capitalist who is setting up Bantum Tool and doing all kinds of progressive development in Peekskill. Now he is doing some CNC business and development, mostly involving prototyping circuit boards.
All kinds of art support was outlined. "I was just minding my own business," just trying to have a chi latte...
Not a lot got done around the house. We did our grocery shopping after loading up the Audi with Home Depo garden supplies like manure and brown colored compost. The laden A4 leaned back like a lowrider from a fully loaded trunk.
Afterwards we went to a nursery to buy some plants in a basket: one was a Boston Fern, and the other a hanging vine with purple leaves. One is for the front porch, and the other for the rear, but the Boston Fern looks likely to reside in the living room on a plant stand.
I have a pretty bad case of Posion Ivy on my left arm and left calve that I'm recovering from.
So somehow I am rescuing more Japanese Maples that will establish groves more in the center of Peekskill at Fred and Amanda's house, and in Cortlandt Manor at Dave's house.
At Home Depo I bought a bunch of quart and a half cheap pots to grow seedlings. This Friday is Arbor Day in New York, and inadvertantly I have become the Johnny Appleseed of Japanese Maples.
Cal
It was about a half hour drive away, but it seemed it was a mostly white crowd, and I saw only a few people of color. Still I felt right at home because I have become a hill-billy.
I talked with a local woman while waiting on a food line. She asked me where I drove up from; and when I mentioned Peekskill, she mentioned that she once lived there.
I brought up how we moved from Madhattan, and how much I love the better quality of life; then she mentioned how things have changed.
At one time everybody knew each other, but that's not so anymore, and the city folk it seems bring their bad behaviors and problems with them she complained.
She was being honest, and I understood what she meant. I believe she understood why I am happier, less bothered, and feel good about being away from the city.
I guess I have become a country boy and am not so ghetto anymore. LOL.
At Stormville one of "Maggie's" followers recognized her and there was a photo op for the follower.
On our way back to Peekskill we stopped at Peekskill Coffee to get a Chi Latte. We sat outside in the closed off street that is next to "The Flat Iron Building" which rests on a triangular block.
Nearby at another table was a hipster couple, but when they got up to leave they stopped by to say hello.
"You must be the Accidental Icon?" Maggie was asked.
Fred is also a digital influencer who promotes Peekskill, the arts, and knows all the history and smut of Peekskill. He moved from Brooklyn about 4 years ago. Amanda is his wife.
After some talking, I offer them to sit down with us, and I learned a lot about the politics, the smut, and all the big city planning that is going on.
"I was just minding my own business," I say, and then I kinda meet someone rather influential. Anyways they were an interesting couple, and we talked for quit a while.
Now it seems like we just got top listed and will be meeting and mingling with the power brokers. One would be interested in Devil Christian. This guy who lived in California made it big with 3D printing and sold that business.
He is now a venture capitalist who is setting up Bantum Tool and doing all kinds of progressive development in Peekskill. Now he is doing some CNC business and development, mostly involving prototyping circuit boards.
All kinds of art support was outlined. "I was just minding my own business," just trying to have a chi latte...
Not a lot got done around the house. We did our grocery shopping after loading up the Audi with Home Depo garden supplies like manure and brown colored compost. The laden A4 leaned back like a lowrider from a fully loaded trunk.
Afterwards we went to a nursery to buy some plants in a basket: one was a Boston Fern, and the other a hanging vine with purple leaves. One is for the front porch, and the other for the rear, but the Boston Fern looks likely to reside in the living room on a plant stand.
I have a pretty bad case of Posion Ivy on my left arm and left calve that I'm recovering from.
So somehow I am rescuing more Japanese Maples that will establish groves more in the center of Peekskill at Fred and Amanda's house, and in Cortlandt Manor at Dave's house.
At Home Depo I bought a bunch of quart and a half cheap pots to grow seedlings. This Friday is Arbor Day in New York, and inadvertantly I have become the Johnny Appleseed of Japanese Maples.
Cal
Range-rover
Veteran
Glad to hear your getting around up in the country, I just love those
flea markets, once in NYC I was looking for tubes for my new to me
Fisher amps I restored, I found a seller with a bucket full of tubes
and found some 12AX7's with a diamond mark on the bottom for $5.00
each so I purchased them I tested them and all were good but the best
part they were made by Telefunken great tubes and now selling for
$50.00 each, see it pays to dig.
flea markets, once in NYC I was looking for tubes for my new to me
Fisher amps I restored, I found a seller with a bucket full of tubes
and found some 12AX7's with a diamond mark on the bottom for $5.00
each so I purchased them I tested them and all were good but the best
part they were made by Telefunken great tubes and now selling for
$50.00 each, see it pays to dig.
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
Bob,
Telefunkin 12AX7's sell for more than $100.00. These tubes are known for low-low noise and long-long life.
They are favored for use with expensive ribbon mikes that cost thousands for use in pre-amps. For the very same reasons guitar nuts love them for use in pre-amps.
These Telefunkin tubes are rated for something like 100K hours of use. So if I played guitar full time for 40 hours a week, no vacation, no bathroom breaks, no lunch it would take about 48 years to wear out a new tube.
I seem to favor Telefunkin "smooth plates" over the "boxed plates." They seem to have a smoother roll off on the treble to my ears.
Cal
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
It seems Japanese Maples have low Q.C.
The seedlings can vary a lot from the parent. I can already see that there is a great amount of diversity and verity in the twenty or so J.M.'s I already rescued. One has green and red leaves which I find unusual.
On my property it seems I have a beet plant growing wild and all kinds of feral flowers. There seems to be a lot of clay in the soil, and recently at Home Depo the ran out of Peat Moss.
I have a hill-billy garden of sorts.
Lately my go to camera has been my MM. Mostly due to its size and portability rigged with a 28 Cron Version 1.
The weather in the lower Hudson Valley is rather moody and I find it beautiful. Spring certainly arrived late.
Our new friends Fred and Amanda's house is 197 feet above sea level, but the Baby Victorian is only 30 feet above sea level. My house is at the bottom of the valley that forms Peekskill. The Hudson River promotes a ground fog often and it can be very mysterious and pretty. That fog often invades Dickey Brook behind my back-backyard. The illusion is you can imagine you are in some rural English garden because of my lawns in my back-backyard.
On the closed off street by Peekskill Coffee they have live music out on the street every weekend. The Brooklyn vibe is here.
Cal
The seedlings can vary a lot from the parent. I can already see that there is a great amount of diversity and verity in the twenty or so J.M.'s I already rescued. One has green and red leaves which I find unusual.
On my property it seems I have a beet plant growing wild and all kinds of feral flowers. There seems to be a lot of clay in the soil, and recently at Home Depo the ran out of Peat Moss.
I have a hill-billy garden of sorts.
Lately my go to camera has been my MM. Mostly due to its size and portability rigged with a 28 Cron Version 1.
The weather in the lower Hudson Valley is rather moody and I find it beautiful. Spring certainly arrived late.
Our new friends Fred and Amanda's house is 197 feet above sea level, but the Baby Victorian is only 30 feet above sea level. My house is at the bottom of the valley that forms Peekskill. The Hudson River promotes a ground fog often and it can be very mysterious and pretty. That fog often invades Dickey Brook behind my back-backyard. The illusion is you can imagine you are in some rural English garden because of my lawns in my back-backyard.
On the closed off street by Peekskill Coffee they have live music out on the street every weekend. The Brooklyn vibe is here.
Cal
Phil_F_NM
Camera hacker
Watch out for the headless horseman out there.
Phil Forrest
Phil Forrest
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
Fred seems to want to do a Mini Photoville at the Peekskill waterfront.
Like the NYC Meet-Up it looks like I'm getting "snookered" again into doing something I otherwise might not want to do.
I was just minding my own business... Lately it has gotten harder to promote myself as a "Lazy-Slacker."
Fred knows the power brokers, knows how to get funding, and somehow thinks I'm a key player because I voll-N-TEAR-ed and was involved with Photoville.
This on one hand is mucho cool, but then again it reminds me of when "Maggie" without asking said to a friend/coworker of hers who was pregnant and was getting married that I not only would do the photography for the wedding, but also the video.
I shot my Nikon F3P with a Vivitar 283 and had to learn by trial by fire all about Guide Numbers, and somehow perform two jobs in a Church basement in Jersey City.
The cost of film and development (color) was on me and was our wedding gift. I was stressed out of my mind, but everything came out great.
I am trying to lay low, retire, and do my own things, but for some unknown reason I get "snookered" again and again. Funny thing is that I do little to promote myself, yet I get targeted anyways.
I'm not famous, fame is no fun, and I would rather practice anti social behavior and be left alone.
Should I feel lucky? This is getting crazy.
I can't even drink a chi latte without something big happening. Whatever happened to Calvin the Lazy-Slacker?
Cal
Like the NYC Meet-Up it looks like I'm getting "snookered" again into doing something I otherwise might not want to do.
I was just minding my own business... Lately it has gotten harder to promote myself as a "Lazy-Slacker."
Fred knows the power brokers, knows how to get funding, and somehow thinks I'm a key player because I voll-N-TEAR-ed and was involved with Photoville.
This on one hand is mucho cool, but then again it reminds me of when "Maggie" without asking said to a friend/coworker of hers who was pregnant and was getting married that I not only would do the photography for the wedding, but also the video.
I shot my Nikon F3P with a Vivitar 283 and had to learn by trial by fire all about Guide Numbers, and somehow perform two jobs in a Church basement in Jersey City.
The cost of film and development (color) was on me and was our wedding gift. I was stressed out of my mind, but everything came out great.
I am trying to lay low, retire, and do my own things, but for some unknown reason I get "snookered" again and again. Funny thing is that I do little to promote myself, yet I get targeted anyways.
I'm not famous, fame is no fun, and I would rather practice anti social behavior and be left alone.
Should I feel lucky? This is getting crazy.
I can't even drink a chi latte without something big happening. Whatever happened to Calvin the Lazy-Slacker?
Cal
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
Phil,
I drove across the country New York to New Mexico (2000 miles) several times in Jeeps.
Many times I found myself feeling like E.T., meaning feeling like I came from another planet because I stood out so much.
In Stormville not many people of color, and of course this reminds me of growing up in all white communities out in Long Island where it kinda was segregated.
I found it interesting how in New Mexico how the "Anglos," the Latinos, and the Native Americans kinda self segregated themselves to maintain their cultures.
For me it is not difficult to feel out of place.
Peekskill does feel like a good fit though: 44% Latino; with the remaining 56% equally divided between black and white.
Calvin, formerly known as "The Lazy-Slacker."
Out to Lunch
Ventor
Upon your retirement, go travel in Asia, you'll feel right at home. Cheers, OtL
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
Yesterday was Long Island revisited for dental cleanings. The congestion was many fold, air quality, traffic, and lack of open space. "Maggie" smelled fermented dumpster smell upon leaving the car, but no dumpster was in sight.
So Peekskill and Westchester living has tainted our experiences of City and Long Island living as assaults on the senses, and we are mighty pleased with our home purchase.
I had a consult with a rep from Sun Run, the biggest Solar company. I figure it makes sense to go with the big boy because for service and warrantee over the 25 expected life of the system.
A new option will be installing the array on the garage which will have a new roof installed. The option of doing a pitched roof as a replacement for a hip roof, and I figure the footprint of the garage will increase from 21x20 to 31x20.
The north-south or east-west orientation are both viable with the array installed facing either the south or west. Know that the panels are about 70 pounds each, measure 3x5, and that a 16 panel 5.4 KW array is about $26K.
About 26% of those costs would be offset by Fed Tax Credits, and then add on New York's Tax Credits.
There are two battery backups available: one is $7K; and the Teslar version is $12K, but that pretty much is a redundant syslem for the entire house with something like 20 outlets.
So my 400 foot studio is moving along in its planning phase. Keeping the solar panels off the Baby-Victorian maintains curb appeal. Designing and planning for a new roof on the garage seems like the best way to go, especially with a peaked roof. I figure a ridge beamed roof so I am free of trusses.
My logic is that this would be a pretty safe investment, I would have gains through tax subsidies, I would lower operating costs of home ownership, and I would add value and comfort to my home. Most of all I would lower and control some of my energy costs.
As far as timeline goes, the new roof will be next year I figure. It only takes about a day to have the Solar Array installed. The Battery Backup seems very practical considering the severed storms that are happening, and the likelihood of power outages eventually happening.
POSTSCRIPT: Further research informed me that I should set the array facing south at a 41 degree angle (Latitude of New York).
Calvin-August
So Peekskill and Westchester living has tainted our experiences of City and Long Island living as assaults on the senses, and we are mighty pleased with our home purchase.
I had a consult with a rep from Sun Run, the biggest Solar company. I figure it makes sense to go with the big boy because for service and warrantee over the 25 expected life of the system.
A new option will be installing the array on the garage which will have a new roof installed. The option of doing a pitched roof as a replacement for a hip roof, and I figure the footprint of the garage will increase from 21x20 to 31x20.
The north-south or east-west orientation are both viable with the array installed facing either the south or west. Know that the panels are about 70 pounds each, measure 3x5, and that a 16 panel 5.4 KW array is about $26K.
About 26% of those costs would be offset by Fed Tax Credits, and then add on New York's Tax Credits.
There are two battery backups available: one is $7K; and the Teslar version is $12K, but that pretty much is a redundant syslem for the entire house with something like 20 outlets.
So my 400 foot studio is moving along in its planning phase. Keeping the solar panels off the Baby-Victorian maintains curb appeal. Designing and planning for a new roof on the garage seems like the best way to go, especially with a peaked roof. I figure a ridge beamed roof so I am free of trusses.
My logic is that this would be a pretty safe investment, I would have gains through tax subsidies, I would lower operating costs of home ownership, and I would add value and comfort to my home. Most of all I would lower and control some of my energy costs.
As far as timeline goes, the new roof will be next year I figure. It only takes about a day to have the Solar Array installed. The Battery Backup seems very practical considering the severed storms that are happening, and the likelihood of power outages eventually happening.
POSTSCRIPT: Further research informed me that I should set the array facing south at a 41 degree angle (Latitude of New York).
Calvin-August
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
UPDATE: Seems like Sun Power has paralleled inverters and the most efficient panels. This seems to be the best choice.
Cal
Cal
Calzone
Gear Whore #1
Last week "Maggie" thought she saw a Lynx in our backyard. When she mentioned this to our neighbor, our neighbor said that generally they are nocturnal, but we see them around here during the day.
The only time I saw a Lynx was late at night when driving in New Mexico, as it scampered across the road in the Santa Fe National Forest.
Hawks are like pigeons in Peekskill. I saw another episode of a group of hawks riding the thermals as a group. In a ways they create their own cloud filling space.
The Audi A4 was again a low rider loaded up with peat moss, mulch, and manure. I transplanted a Hy-dreng-ER to the front to clear the area for a flagstone patio. I have one more to transplant.
This work was brutal because it seems one previous owner who worke for the MTA mixed lots of "free" gravel under a grassy section as fill. This made it hard to shovel, but I'm mighty stubborn.
I'm thinking that I'm getting too skinny, as my build resembles that of a flyweight boxer that is all muscle and bones. I don't have a scale, but I bet I'm under 135 pounds, and I'm 5'10".
Beyond the back-backyard a peninsula is forming from all the landfill. There is some form of invasive Japanese stalk-plant that currently I'm using for erosion control. They send runners and have roots all over the place.
Cal
The only time I saw a Lynx was late at night when driving in New Mexico, as it scampered across the road in the Santa Fe National Forest.
Hawks are like pigeons in Peekskill. I saw another episode of a group of hawks riding the thermals as a group. In a ways they create their own cloud filling space.
The Audi A4 was again a low rider loaded up with peat moss, mulch, and manure. I transplanted a Hy-dreng-ER to the front to clear the area for a flagstone patio. I have one more to transplant.
This work was brutal because it seems one previous owner who worke for the MTA mixed lots of "free" gravel under a grassy section as fill. This made it hard to shovel, but I'm mighty stubborn.
I'm thinking that I'm getting too skinny, as my build resembles that of a flyweight boxer that is all muscle and bones. I don't have a scale, but I bet I'm under 135 pounds, and I'm 5'10".
Beyond the back-backyard a peninsula is forming from all the landfill. There is some form of invasive Japanese stalk-plant that currently I'm using for erosion control. They send runners and have roots all over the place.
Cal
Particular
a.k.a. CNNY, disassembler
Cal (and anyone else),
you should check out this video about the photographer Stephen Gill. He talks about discovering the wildlife after moving to rural Sweden from London. If you don't know his work you should check out some of his books. 'The pillar' is really great and won and book award.
stephen-gillwhile-we-are-sleeping
you should check out this video about the photographer Stephen Gill. He talks about discovering the wildlife after moving to rural Sweden from London. If you don't know his work you should check out some of his books. 'The pillar' is really great and won and book award.
stephen-gillwhile-we-are-sleeping
Phil_F_NM
Camera hacker
Cal,
Back in New Mexico, we had some kind of invasive elm that sent runners all over the place and eventually cracked the 20 year old septic tank. I remember using my full size Bronco (with the 300CI inline 6cyl engine) to pull the stump out of the ground, after we cut the tree down, drilled holes, poisoned it with salt and successfully killed it after a battle which lasted several years.
Phil Forrest