10 days in Las Vegas

Gave my mom a hug and promptly received her upper respiratory virus. Slept on the nearly rock hard matttress upstairs with the dusty smelling pillows, which I covered with a freshly laundered towel the 2nd night.

Saw Jennifer on the 2nd night and boys. All well.

Ate at the buffet at the Bellagio on Thanksgiving Day.
While staying with my mom, I heard someone knocking on the door--not the front door, but the bathroom door where mom was taking a shower. The lock button had gotten stuck and she was locked in. I slipped a screwdriver under the door--she removed the doorknob and I was able to draw the mechanism back to allow her exit. The next day we replaced the bathroom door knobs.

Then a malfunctioning casement window crank called for removal.  The phone at Eagle windows in Vegas gave "busy" signal. The store itself was unoccupied with just a table inside. Found the crank online & ordered it. Tom will install.

Repaired broken plastic lock handles for the screen doors. Tom had a stick of poplar, from which I'd cut small blocks and screwed to the locks.

Leaking shower in mom's bathroom. Pulled half the cartridge out, the rest came out with the help of long nose pliers I bought.  Plumber's supply wasn't too helpful--said the cartridges cost 30-40$. Finally, got smart and bought the cartridge at Lowe's for $9. Huge difference between plumber supply store & Lowes prices.

Getting meat fever. Every meal has meat in one dish or more. Great but still, not the way I eat.

Fit to be Tied

I had bought the black coat for the Grays Harbor Symphony concert--$14 from Goodwill in Olympia & Nordstroms branded to boot.  Now I just needed the tie, in solid black.  I skipped Goodwill store in Oly in my rush to get back to town to get my snow tires put on. I made a quick trip to the thrift store on B street and found a black tie with some pattern in gold thread--$2. @ 2 p.m. today, I began to color the gold threads with a black Sharpie pen--the coverage was marginal. would I have to do this several times?  Then I noticed that the tie was more navy blue than black. I didn't have enough sharpie pens in the house to color the whole tie!  I quickly thought of using black spray paint which I knew I had in the basement. I sprayed a light coat on the tie & it looked great! It was dry by the time I had to leave for the bishop center, tho it still smelled of paint. Now if I was lucky the smell sensitive flute players wouldn't get a whiff and fall over in bronchospasm.

The flute players survived and Mary Frye even said I looked good.

I quoted Rodney Dangerfield to Jeff Freed, et al, during intermission--we laughed.

Redux: REI Flash 65 pack

The waist belt and shoulder cinch straps start to loosen up after a few minutes--that lets the load down on my buttocks and lets the load fall rearward.  I was thinking this was endemic to the pack & began to look at other packs in the REI Oly store. REI chick came by and we looked at another Flash 65 pack whose straps didn't slip. Bring your pack back for an exchange, said she.

Recent trip to Top foods.  Stopping at the bakery, where the tech was slicing a loaf of French bread for a couple, I asked aobut how they bake their bread.  Breads go 5 loaves to a tray and up to 22 trays will fit on the cart that holds the bread for fermenting and proofing.  To ferment the cart with dough is rolled into a retarding room about the size of a very large refrigerator, which is kept at a temperature lower than room temp--I'd love to know that temp!  Then for proofing, it is rolled into a similar sized room at about 90 degrees F.  following proofing it goes into a steam injected oven (again the same size)

I forgot to ask if each loaf is kneaded or just stretched and folded.

Also is the dough fermented in one huge volume?

EMS alcohol stoves

eastern Mountain sports
Janice 888-463-6367 on vacation
RE: return of Yakima clips
letter rec'd: need credit card account # to apply credit
Credit to REI VISA

Great Cross Sound Race, Backpack

Just for kicks, I woke up at 5:25, 5:30 and 5:35 to assess whether I would go paddle the Cross Sound Race. I didn't fall back asleep, so ate bit of breakfast and drove off about 6:20. Vern had called yesterday and said lets meet at 5:30 at Top Foods--I'd said I couldn't do anything that early. Arrived at Race venue on time. Water was choppy during the race, lifting the ama many times. A much better day for kayaks than for outriggers. I was caught by another OC1 and a kayaker, but had overtaken the latter and was nearly up to the former when a fistful of seaweed tangled in my rudder, almost stopping me. After clearing the rudder, I was back up to speed but both other paddlers had finished the race. Good fun anyway.

On a 1 hour walk yesterday with the Kelty Cloud 4500 with 36lb of camping gear loaded, I found it drove the waistbelt into my gut, made my back and shoulders sweaty and pushed the chest strap, even in its lowest position, almost to my neck. Went to REI in Oly today to check out sale--didn't want to mail order a backpack w/out trying them on. The saleswoman helped fit me--determining that my back was more like a small. Tried the REI Flash 65, but it fit not quite right, with the waist strap running out & the pack pressing on my butt muscles. I then tried on a Deuter ACT Lite 65 + 10 for 30 minutes--much better staying off the buttocks. The Gregory Baltoro 75 was also better at not pressing on my butt muscles, but in 30 minutes, I felt pressure points on the small of my back. Wore the Deuter for another 20 minutes--bought it. I'll test it on a hike soon up/down hills near my house and/or camping.

Update:  the Deuter was a nice pack but it began to wear on my hamstring muscles.  Had to take it back.  I put the Flash 65 on with 20#.  Bought it after wearing it 30 min in the store.  So far, so good for loads up to 30#--haven't walked with much more. 

33.25 lb hurts?

Yes, 33.25 lb hurts when the weight is a thermarest pad and 3.5 gallons of water in my Dana Astralplane pack. Weird how sometimes the pack feels like a painless part of me and other times my worst enemy. It felt as if it were riding on my buttocks, even with the belt cinched tighter and tighter--my legs began to hurt down the back. Is my back too short for this pack?

After 50 minutes up and down hills, I took off the pack and hiked with just a waist pack. It felt great!

Hm. The REI Flash 65 is on sale. I might go for it.