Category Archives: Ramblings

Adventures, Homesteading, Ramblings

More of not much

20150222_143627Holy crap! What do I write about…

It’s weird, I am in a strange head space right now. I have been thinking about a lot of projects I want to get going or moving forward on but it seems like the entire universe in in a holding pattern. I have aviation projects I want to get working on, radio projects, homesteading projects, building stuff, woodworking, furniture, the list goes on and on, but everything is on hold, well almost everything…

We have been working on putting together a bunch of projects of stuff for sale to try and get a crafting/restoration business going to start generating some funds before we make the jump to a new location but it sapping all our energy and some funds with not much in return as of yet.

What was once going to be a website for a completely different business idea has turned into our families crafting/restoration site VintageAeroWorks.com. We have been working on a bunch of projects and posting them on the site. We also have several projects we are just wrapping up to post over the weekend. All of my energies have been going to getting more build projects done.

While building all of this stock and working side-by-side with Tammy are is a good thing in theory, my head is spinning with all of the things that are on hold while I focus on this. Most of it is stuff that would be on hold anyway. I can’t justify starting any other projects that would require a lot of time or materials right before making a big move. It just wouldn’t make sense. I am trying to cut down the pile of stuff that needs to get moved, not add to it.

Keeping spending down to a bare minimum is also a priority, while still keeping up with what we need to spend money on to get the build projects done.

It’s all so tiring, and I can’t get my brain to switch off. It’s like having 100 projects all running at the same time but having 95 of them all waiting on some outside thing to happen befor you can go any further. You go through the list everyday and try to plan for the next phase of each and every one, but you can’t because that outside thing is a variable and the direction of the project hinges on that variable. 95 variables for 95 projects, all floating around in your head while you try to stay on top of all 100 projects and get that small 5 that you are not waiting on anything done.

Just thinking about thinking about it makes my head hurt. Welcome to my head, watch your step, mind the squishy bits.

The basic plan is for a land acquisition in May with a move date sometime around September. I don’t know if I can hold out that long. I’m relatively sure my perception is skewed, but it sure seems like the Stupid and Ignorant quotient is getting larger every day, and I’m finding my tolerance for it is in very short supply. Fortunately working from home keeps me out of the majority of it but even going out only a few times a week has become a very trying experience.

I guess I need some more shop time. 🙂

Till next time,
~FlyBoyJon

Ramblings

2016 out of the gate with a meh

chimpHere it is the middle of February and I am just making my first 2016 post. You’d think I have been very busy. Well I have been, sort of.

The Universe smiled on us early this year and is allowing us to keep on track with our relocation plans. We are still months out from anything decisive, but the wheels are in motion. You may have noticed the Etsy link in the side bar, go ahead, click on it and take a look at the new store to see if there is anything you are interested in. I’ll wait…

We also have the Vintage Aero Works site where we will be posting about projects and stuff for sale back up and running. They are both slim picken’s right now, but we will be adding listings very soon.

I have been working on build projects for sale and fixing up a variety of found treasures that we have been selling on CraigsList as well. My upholstery skills are getting a workout too.

There isn’t  much else to report at the moment, unless you want me to get all political-ragey-soap-box-ranty cause this is a presidential election year, a Supreme Court Justice just died, and as per the norm, lots of California stupidity in the State House and in the courts… I didn’t think so.

On that note, I’ll just sign off here, until next time.

~FlyBoyJon

DIY, Health & Fitness, Homesteading, Off Grid, Ramblings, Sustainable

The passing of 2015

20150222_1436272015 has been an interesting year. You could say it was full of weird and wacky adventures, loss, sadness, backsliding and headaches. It has also seen some forward progress, accomplishments both personal and professional, and a lot of forward momentum on future planning.

The pic is from our vacation/scouting trip up to Klamath Falls, Oregon back in February. It was a great trip. We had a lot of fun and it helped set a lot of things in motion for our future.

I’m not really sure what it all means but 2016 promises to be a big year of change. Tammy and I are already working on getting fit. She has been doing Weight Watchers and hopping on the treadmill. I have been working on getting back to Paleo and tredmilling as well. I am also getting back to isometric strength training. The fitness kick is more than a general health looking in the mirror thing, it is in preparation for moving forward with homesteading plans.

We have talked about it for years and I have been studying a variety of subject areas. I am now well versed in alternative construction techniques and permaculture design, though there is always more to learn and I am by no means an expert. I am versed in a wide range of sustainable systems for the homesteading environment and I am excited to get building.

Gardening has presented the largest challenge. Our 6′ x 10′, west facing, covered, patio space is not even close to ideal. We have had better luck keeping plants alive inside than outside. A while back we resigned ourselves to holding off on building the gardening skills until we are in a more rural environment with enough ground space for a full kitchen garden.

I have been studying up on Hügelkultur, permaculture soil building and earthworks, pioneering plants, cover crops and general land rehabilitation. Depending on the site, it is likely that the first year or two will be spent more on soil development than anything else.

We have also been working on our food preservation skills. Tammy has been getting into canning, mostly jams and jellies. I just finished canning four pounds of jalapeño peppers which filled eight pint jars that are now cooling. Over the spring and summer I dried a lot of Serrano pepper from the three pepper bushes I was able to grow on the back porch. I am hoping to do more soups and veggies in the coming months.

Speaking of food… the livestock issue is one where we are pretty much complete novices. I have had a little experience with rabbits and chickens but that was over 40 years ago. Based solely on our regular food patterns, raising chickens is pretty much a must. Anything else would be more a function of site.

Soil needs, available resources, what the site can support, structures, and systems, these are all site dependant and since we don’t have a site yet, we are at an impasse in these areas. Over the last few years we have been acquiring the foundation information and resources to get started. With this in place we are turning our focus on doing what we can do, close out debt, save as much as we can, and focus on getting property.

So that’s where we are, looking for land.

Until next time,
~FlyBoyJon

Ramblings

Halloween Movie List Revisited

Okay, it’s been almost a month since Halloween… How did we do?

Well we did pretty good overall I think. We started with a list of 50 movies and ended up with a list of 57. We managed to get 45 under the belt. All things considered, not a bad bit of movie watching. Especially considering we had to take a week off when the TV unexpectedly went boom.

Until next year,
~FlyBoyJon

  1. Addams Family (1991)
  2. Addams Family Values (1993)
  3. Army of Darkness (1992)
  4. Blade (1998)
  5. Blade 2 (2002)
  6. Blade Trinity (2004)
  7. Blade House of Chthon(2006)
  8. Book of Life (2014) added
  9. Casper (1995)
  10. Contagion (2011)
  11. The Craft (1996)
  12. The Day After Tomorrow (2004)
  13. Dracula (Bela Lugosi 1931)
  14. Dracula (1992)
  15. Jeff Dunham: Minding the Monsters (2012)
  16. Frankenstein (Boris Karloff 1931)
  17. Ghostbusters (1984)
  18. Ghostbusters 2 (1989)
  19. Halloween Town (1998)
  20. Halloween Town Kalabars Revenge (2001)
  21. Halloween Town High (2004)
  22. Halloween Town, Return to (2006)
  23. Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013)
  24. Haunted Honeymoon (1986)
  25. Hocus Pocus (1993)
  26. The Little Vampire (2000)
  27. The Lost Boys (1987)
  28. The Monster Squad (1987)
  29. The Mummy (Brendan Fraser 1999)
  30. The Mummy Returns (Brendan Fraser 2001)
  31. My Best Friend is a Vampire (1987)
  32. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) (also a christmas movie) 🙂
  33. Odd Thomas (2013) added
  34. Once Bitten (1985)
  35. Poltergeist (1982) added
  36. Practical Magic (1998)
  37. Resident Evil (2002)
  38. Resident Evil Apocalypse (2004)
  39. Resident Evil Extinction (2010)
  40. Resident Evil Afterlife (2010)
  41. Resident Evil Retribution (2012) added
  42. The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
  43. Shaun of the Dead (2004) added
  44. The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988)
  45. Sleepy Hollow (1999)
  46. Underworld (2003)
  47. Underworld Evolution (2006)
  48. Underworld Rise of the Lycans (2009) added
  49. Underworld Awakening (2012)
  50. Vampires (1998)
  51. Van Helsing (2004)
  52. Warlock (1986)
  53. When Good Ghouls Go Bad (2001)
  54. The Witches of Eastwick (1987)
  55. The Wolf Man (Lon Chaney 1941)
  56. World War Z (2013)
  57. Young Frankenstein (1974)
Amature Radio, Aviation, Ramblings, School

Post 201

Profile PicYesterday was an odd day. I suppose it was odd for many Americans for a variety of reasons. The most obvious of course being the 14th anniversary of 9-11, so I didn’t notice that my post yesterday was my 200th post.

For me September 11th has a strangely linked secondary meaning, it was also the day I started my formal flight-school training in 2003, though technically my first flight was April 22nd, 2003. I only had three flight lessons before deciding to go the professional academy route and the next available start date began five months later on September 11.

I always seem to think about aviation stuff on 9-11. Most of the time it is a sub-conscious shift in thought. I don’t even realize I have been thinking aviation until after my thought have shifted. Yesterday’s post obviously was aviation in theme and I have been mulling around a lot of stuff the last 12 hours or so.

When I notice the post being #200 this morning, it got me thinking of the many firsts I have encountered in the last decade or so; first pilot’s license, first college class taken, first instructors license, first aviation class taught, first mechanic’s license, first college class taught, first college degree, first amateur radio license, and my first VE session.

I’m sure there have been many other firsts along the way, certainly many smaller firsts came about as a result of these, but these in particular are mile-stone moments to me. They are all significant events marking recognized achievements in areas I am passionate about. Aviation, and radio, are things that are deeply embedded in my being. They have been a part of me in some form for much longer than a decade.

My contemplations of yesterday and today have been not only a pondering of opportunities and ideas. They have been a review of accomplishments, a review of the goals I have set for myself, how they intertwine, and how at several points I allowed myself to be distracted from the task at hand. Looking back from today’s vantage point, many of those delays were actually necessary. Ether to gain non-related skills, take the time for technology to change, or just let some things ruminate.

FrieslandIn many ways it is analogous to the farmer. Working the soil, providing nutrients, and sewing seeds. As the farmer must wait for the seeds to germinate and grow, I have been doing other “chores” waiting for that germination and growth. Stuff around the farm that may not directly relate to that crop, but still important for the overall operation of the farm. Now it’s time to do the finishing. Harvest comes soon, some will be reaped and some let go to seed.

What I really want to be doing as shifted, reformed, and modified, but those basic goals are still the same. The same as they have been for over a decade. Now I am in a much better position to see them through. Now it’s time to refocus on the finishing before harvest and make things happen.

I like it when an analogy comes together.

Until next time,
~FlyBoyJon

Ramblings

Remnants Of Past Lives

It is with a some trepidation, but great conviction I am offering up some of my toys for adoption to good homes where they will enjoy new lives. Unless specifically noted I am open to reasonable offers. Click on the pics for larger photos.

If you are interested in any of these items please email me jon at flyboyjon dot com or if you already have my phone number send me a text or call.

I have …

  • 5 edge weapons (3 swords, 1 knife, and 1 brush blade)
  • 3 BB-guns (plastic-pellet type)
  • 2 ballistic nylon holsters
  • Super8 movie projector and 8mm film viewer/editing station (no sound on the editor).

Edge Weapons

#1 is the Scimitar – 48″ overall length with the blade coming in at 35″. This is a big honken, sharp, mean looking blade. I love this sword. The scabbard is a modern style that I had planned on replacing with something more period correct but never got around to it. It’s pretty spiff in the pics, but it is way cooler in person, just saying…
I’d like $40 for this blade OBO

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#2 is the Celtic. At 32″ overall and a blade 24″ long this is a stocky sword. Also a sharp blade, the blade could pass for Roman or Celtic but the hilt, grip, and pommel are definitely Celtic in appearance.
I’d like $30 for this blade OBO

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#3 this is the “Chinese Brush” sword… ya, I didn’t come up with that designation. This is a kind of axe/cleaver/machete hybrid with a stout 15″ stainless steel blade and a 550 cord (it’s not true 550) wrapped handgrip bringing the total length to 26″. A little big for a Go Bag, but if the zombie apocalypse happens, this is the blade you want in your hand. The sheath sucks, I’ll say that right now, I would never consider using the criss-cross back straps, but the blade rocks.
I am firm on $50 for this blade.

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#4 is a costume grade Bowie knife at 16″ with an 11″ blade. It is solid enough but rough all around. With some TLC it could actually be a good knife.
$$ Best Offer $$

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#5 is a costume grade basket rapier, a few rust spots here and there. Will clean up well for costume use. 42″ overall length with a 35″ blade. Twisted-wire wound grip. No scabbard.
$$ Best Offer $$

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BB-Guns

First up are the pair of black pistols that look like 9mm autos. They have an orange barrel tip but are otherwise all black. I purchased them for costuming, and they do actually work as plastic-pellet guns. They are in great condition and include a pack of pellets each.
I would like $20 for the pair OBO

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The second BB-gun is a clear (with orange barrel tip) plastic-pellet target shooter. Also purchased for costuming. Works well and includes a pack of pellets and target.
I would like $10 OBO

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Holsters

The holsters are ballistic nylon thigh holsters with all of the straps for attaching to the belt and leg. They can also be used on the hip directly attached to the belt, or used with an ALICE or MOLLE rig. They were used with the BB-guns for costuming, but are perfectly suited for average size 9mm autos and similar handguns. One is black and the other is tan.
I am looking to get $10 each OBO

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8mm Film Equipment

My interests in filmmaking are generally geared to digital and non-linear editing, however, when the opportunity presented itself in the form of this Super 8 projector and the viewer/editor I jumped.

I started by checking out both units top to bottom and ordering spare replacement lamps for both (1 spare for the viewer and 4 for the projector) and conducting operations checks with the new lamps. Everything works on these units. The catch for me is, I don’t have any 8mm film stock, developed reels, or a camera.

I aint makin’ anything on this deal, I just want them to go to a good home with someone who will use them.
I am looking for $50 for the entire setup OBO

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Ramblings

Taking the car to a shop

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Not my car, just a shot of the shop from the waiting room

As a mechanic myself, taking the car in to a shop for simple mechanical work is more than a little frustrating, it’s down right painful.

In our current location we don’t have the space for me to do any wrench-monkey work. Besides the lack of space there is also the issue of the complex rules not allowing any vehicle mechanical work on site. We tweak rules here and there for our own benefit on occasion but nothing more than we do for other residents who have been there for 20+ years.

The shop space I do have is minimal and of course it isn’t a garage or anything similar I could get a vehicle near let alone inside so anything that would require an overnight period of disassembled exposure is out of the question.

I have so many negative feelings about taking the car in for anything, but for something simple like an oil change or breaks, wow, guilt, inadequacy, sloth, the list goes on and on. Intellectually I know I could do the work without any problems. I have confidence in my skills and abilities. I enjoy doing the work.

It’s not just the space issue. If I am out doing an oil change and a tennent sees me doing it they assume it is okay for them to as well, regardless of their skills or lack of attention to environmentally safe practices. This is one of the reasons we had to lock out all of the hosebibs to prevent car washing. Soapy water down storm drains makes the city cranky especially when it is swirled with petroleum waste, and they don’t stop to check and see if it is a 100% biodegradable product.

For a little context, I’m writing this post while I sit watching my car’s oil being changed, by some one else. Also while sitting here a thought is forming in my head, a different kind of maker space, a club/community auto shop space. Dues paying members can schedule a space for a day to do basic less-than-a-day mechanical work and members with longer term projects can rent a bay by the week or month. Members bring there own hand tools but power, air compressor, and hydraulic lifts are provided by the space. The space could evolve over time to include other shop tools both large and small.

A club would be a good way to do it. Meetings with presentations on new equipment, or educational presentations on various mechanical skills. “Learn auto upholstery this Friday” anything that the group would be interested in. Body work, rebuilding a transmission… It wouldn’t be that hard to come up with new stuff to cover.

Doing something like this in the S.F. Bay Area would be a pain to organize with all of the compliance issues and costs, not to mention the insurance requirements and zoning issues. But the concept, I think it has a lot of potential. A Motor Transport club, cars, trucks, motorcycles, boats, airplanes, if it can fit in the space of a single bay, it could be worked on or built in this kind of environment.

I shall ruminate on this for a bit…

~FlyBoyJon

Politics, Ramblings

Head in the sand…

bag-O-moneyThe topic of current events arose in conversation this morning. The two major events that came up were the Nepal earthquake with the ongoing humanitarian aid efforts there and the situation in Baltimore.

In Nepal not only is there the topic of the humanitarian aid, but also the political elements involved with the relief communications problems. There is a long story about amateure radio and the Nepal governments apparent conflicts with the emergency preparations that some hams have been working on for years. It may have a connection to many lost lives which may have been saved had they not been blocked by government efforts. I am getting this information from a directly involved party, and I have every reason to believe him, but I know very little about the actual situation from first-hand knowledge. So while my heart goes out to the people of Nepal, it is hard to make educated comments on the political front.

With Baltimore, well, this is a tough subject to broach. As the title of this post says, my head has been in the sand. I know very little of what is actually going on. I did see the video of the mother who when she saw her son rioting and throwing rocks at police went down to the site, found him, and smacked him around. Nice to see a parent taking responsibility for their child by the way. I don’t know how much of or even if that story is true, I only saw one blog post and a video clip.

Where I’m going with this is I haven’t been paying a lot of attention to the media’s reports of what’s going on in the world lately. Mainly because these days the media, all media, has an agenda. They all want to have eyes on their “data.” Their revenue stream depends on viewership, so they must sell there “data” in whatever form to make money. Big Media has a market and a demographic they are selling to, so their perspective is skewed to that demographic. Further complicating things is the political connection of the management and owners of the media outlet further skewing the perspective and agenda.

Just to be perfectly clear, I don’t like or trust Big Media. I bet you already figured that out though. As the quote goes, “Follow the money.” Who has most of the money in the US, media and financial institutions. Who holds the most sway with elected officials, media and financial. Who shapes public opinion, media and financial. Do you think credit companies and banks want you to be debt free? Hell no! They would go broke. Do you think Big Media would be making billions if there was no public conflict? Same thing, hell no!

There are miscreants, there are bad cops, and the behavior of both is reprehensible, but these bad actors are in very small numbers. They are the instigators, knowingly or not, doing a job they are employed to do. Who do you think is at the root of backing and organizing the instigators?… This isn’t just about Baltimore. It is the direction the country is being manipulated. I know almost nothing about the situation in Baltimore. I have heard a lot, but I don’t KNOW very much at all. I refuse to be manipulated into an opinion by someone elses political/financial agenda.

I can only loosely observe trends. There are few verifiable facts being made available, and fewer sources that can be trusted to provide these facts with any modicum of objectivity. Observing trends and trying to sus out which way the wind is blowing is about the best we can hope for. Getting incensed about something because the media says its true only serves to distract us.

When a population is polarized, agitated, and distracted it doesn’t see the real problems it faces, the real instigators. Who is polarizing, agitating, and distracting us? Follow the money.

~FlyBoyJon

Ramblings, Writing

Blog Anxiety

I have always struggled with keeping up on the blog writing. It seems like I never have time to post when I want to and finding the inspiration at other times is fleeting at best. Since I set up the other blog for my radio stuff I don’t seem to have a problem with ether.

Any regular blogger will say you have to have something you are passionate about and actively engaged it to make a blog work. I am passionate about aviation but I haven’t been as actively engaged as I would like, so I guess that explains the difficulties.

This blog has never really felt focused to one specific thing. I tried to focus it on several occasions, but that never really seemed to work out. I have usually ended up with this place as more of a rambling stump than an active blog. Funny how I seem to be able to post more here now that I am actively, and daily involved with the other site.

However you chose to look at it i guess it is good that I am using both more frequently now. I have a place for a specific passion and a place to stump speech-a-fie as I deem necessary. Like this post, thoughts that I wanted to get out but might not otherwise have written because it didn’t fit the intention of the site. Well, now this site is more free-form I can post whatever whenever and not feel like I am doing something that doesn’t fit.

Just a musing.

~FlyBoyJon

Ramblings

Feelin’ Philoslothical

PhilaslothicalTo whomever did this graphic, I thank you. Like many amusing things I found it on the interwebs many moons ago. It tickled me in the feels and I always smile when I see it.

There are may of these little graphical gems we run across that make us smile, or feel something on a particular day. Some stick with us for a long time others are fleeting. While I was digging around for graphics to use in another post, this one once again made me smile.

What does this have to do with anything? Not much. I just wanted to share it.

What am I posting about? Not much. Just some unconnected musings.

Yesterday we went to the Stanford Blood Center and while I was indisposed for my platelets donation my mind kept wandering. I had planned on doing some reading but nothing seemed to be able to hold my attention.

Along with all of the studying for my commercial radio license exams, my general studies in electronics and amateur radio, getting day-job stuff done, and making plans for the future, I haven’t been doing much socializing, online or anywhere else. Every time we plan on something to do, something else pops up and requires our attention. Usually we end up waiting for vendors to arrive or finish up and by the time they are done, it’s too late to go do what we planned on doing, or we are just too damn tired/stressed to be out in public.

We have been very busy cleaning out the detritus gathered over a couple of decades of keeping a house. We are clean people, we have done well for years in keeping the clutter to a minimum but we have collected a lot of stuff over the years. Stuff that for all intents and purposes we really don’t need. I need to do some purging over the next month or so to pare down the pile a bit more.

I have several projects in the day-job that have been floating for a while but I am slowly getting them done and off the list. Two big ones have already been cleared off the list this year and I am close to closing out another two, maybe next week, but most definitely by April’s end, along with another big project recently added.

Things are getting done, progress is being made, as are plans for the future. There are very few things to complain about in the life we live, most of them a piddly an insignificant in the big picture. I am very grateful for all that we have and for our life’s experiences.

~FlyBoyJon