May, 2004
Well, friends, it's been a while. I had a "blog" started
and then I updated it and now I can't figure out which
computer it's on. One is in bad shape, another had its
(second) modem give up and I'm using the computer at
work. May have to shell out some shekels, which I don't
want to do. Getting stingy in my old age.
The final figures are in and we saved roughly $100.00
a month, as predicted, by burning wood last winter,
and not only that but the exercise has helped me keep
my weight down. Winter seemed colder than last year so
we may have actually saved more. They're cleaning up
windfalls from the nature walk behind the Science
Building, and what they can't run through the chipper
I run through the stove. I haul it away free and I get
free wood. Everybody is ahead on this deal! Got about
a cord ready for next year so far. Should have the
stove and chainsaw amortized in about five or six
years, maybe sooner if electric rates go up as I'm
thinking they will with $2.00 gasoline and who knows
how much for fuel oil. (Even if they burn coal, the
competition for energy is still going to force prices
up.) Used about 2 1/2 gallons of gas for the chain
saw last winter, and a like amount to haul the wood,
so my costs are still low. Of course, if everybody
gets smart and buys a wood stove, I may be paying
for my wood. (By the way, I don't know what the
actual numbers are, but we are in fact burning more
gasoline in this country and no refineries have
been built for 30 years or so. Even if the Arabs
flood us with oil, we could end up with a gasoline
shortage. Aren't I an optimist? One more reason
that I walk to work.)
The city library budget has been cut to the bone, so
Kathy is volunteering a few hours a week to go down and
straighten up the shelves. It's a mess with cutting
hours of the staff and maybe even some layoffs. She's
working about 30 hours a week at the Student Health
Center on campus, so in a sense she does have the time.
Well, yeah, if you don't count the fact that she's
planning out my summer to re-do the kitchen from floor
to ceiling. It's making the cupboard doors that will
take some time. I think we're keeping the same
counter top. She figures that since I have all those
"toys" (power tools) in the garage, I'd better do
something useful with them. What we save on the
cupboard doors alone will pay for the whole workshop
(table saw, miter saw, router table, drill press,...).
Kathy finally broke down and had a cortisone shot for
her tendonitis that's been bugging her since 1995. It's
helped but there is no guarantee for how long. She's
really enjoying playing the electric bass now. In fact,
she has lined up a couple of "gigs" for us at local
retirement homes and maybe at the jail; I can't keep
track. (Church? Well, that's a long story....)
At the end of the school year, it's amazing what you
can find in the dumpsters. I got probably $100.00 worth
of wood (2x6's 7 feet long, etc) from what I think was
bunk bed arrangements in a couple of the girls' rooms.
also assorted other boards and a whole box of 3-inch
"Useful Screws" as we call them, like long drywall
screws, that came out of these, er, "objects" as I
disassembled them. Got a fair-sized hunk of plywood
also, and four treated 4x4's about 6 feet long. Don't
know if that was for a bunk or to hold up a pet
elephant. (Didn't think they allowed pets....)
Two of those 4x4's became mailbox posts. I took the
random assortment of five mailboxes, each with a
separate post, and put them all onto one board on
about one-foot centers. Neighbors say it looks much
better, and the mailman can get the rear end of his
rig out of the street to put in the mail. Technically
it's not on our property but it degraded the
appearance and the landlord only comes around about
twice a year to cut the grass so we have to keep it
mowed (about 6x130 feet is all).
(Well, actually our retired neighbor across the street
gets really bored about once a week and rides his
mower over and cuts all but the edges.) Anyway, I
only had to buy one board and some weather-resistant
screws.
Got rid of the freezer we "inherited" with the house.
Looked like someone hit it with a car (it was in the
garage) and the door wouldn't shut. Also got rid of
the 80-gallon hot water tank alias Heat Exchanger For
The Solar Hot Water Heater. It was about 30 years old.
More room for our junk, I mean "stuff" now. Built
shelves where the tank was, cost about $5 for
materials, the rest being from my scavenging or
previous projects. Cleaned up my main workbench down
to an average of 6 inches deep with stuff, down from
a foot thick. Still have that solar panel on the roof
which will cause leaks if I remove it and probably
cause leaks if I don't.... (Solar heat? In Indiana?
Cloudy, snowy, rainy Indiana? Oh, well, it kept the
economy going when they bought it in the 1970's!)
All it ever did was barely warm the water; if we get
desperate, I'll put coils in the wood stove like we
had when I was growing up. You had to wait a while,
but it could scald you!
Weather has warmed up, 70's and 80's, some sunshine,
lots of clouds with thunderstorms about every other
day. Turned off the central heat over a month ago,
just using the wood stove once in a while to get the
chill out of the basement when we have a couple of
cool days in a row.
It's nice living in a more rural area, but there are
times.... I wanted a pair of shoes just like the ones
I have on at the moment ("business casual" slip-ons),
so I went to the store that handles them and they can
order them and they'll be here in 6-8 weeks. Well,
rather than wait practically until fall or drive clear
to Chicago, I went on-line and bought them in less
time than it takes to get to the store, and they will
be here within a week. (Maybe cost more, I don't know,
but I'll have them before we go on vacation.) Free
shipping, too! Oh--problem is my big, w-i-d-e feet!
But my point is, of course, why don't the stores
catch on? Get on the Internet, order for the customer.
Small wonder that small-town merchants -- oh, bother!
I'll get off the soapbox.
Good things happening at Grace College. We have a
grant from the Eli Lilly Foundation to get student
interns into the local orthopaedic industry. (In case
you forgot, we're the artificial knee-cap-ital of the
world. Also hips and tooth implants.) We have three
major companies here. When I'm out splitting wood, I
see company jets coming in and out of our little
airport. Anyway, this program may result in really
good jobs for maybe 10-30 grads per year, in
everything from accounting to zoology. They get their
biomedical engineers from big universities but they
need hundreds of support professionals, planning on
400 new jobs over the next, um, 3 years I think. Only
catch is, you have to agree to stay in the Warsaw area
for something like 5 years if they "intern" you and
subsequently hire you. I think the interns get paid
pretty well also. Not a bad deal, all told. With our
aging population, I'd bet they will expand even more
in the Very Near Future. Might need some of their
products myself one of these days.
We got out of town during spring break. I went to a
conference of "computer teachers" (we actually train
geeks, not computers) in Norfolk, VA. Got to see son
Jon and many friends at Liberty on the way, and stayed
with Our Friends in Pennsylvania (do they still use
that motto?) on the way back.
Daughter Kriss is engaged now, to another Jon (you're
confused? I'm confused!) and they're buying a house
this summer. Kathy has it all planned how I'm going
to take the miter saw in the trunk of the car and
we will help them fix up the place. All this and our
own kitchen cupboards, mind you! Well, if we can keep
it under 2 weeks we might get most everything done by
fall. Kriss is still in Boston, and you wouldn't
believe the price of housing. Or maybe you would....
Oh -- we can specify which Jon by saying "Jon" (our
son) or "Dr. Jon" (future son-in-law).
Doesn't look like a trip out West is in the schedule.
At the moment, it's almost cheaper to fly to London
than to Seattle, but that's another story. More about
London maybe later.
Well, that's the news from Lake Woebegon for now.
Hope this finds you well. Let us know what's going
on in your own lives. Keep looking up and don't
watch the TV news, it's horrific!
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