UMTravels

Another intense day of work… which is good since I need to get it done before I leave for Cabo San Lucas with Gnarlene on Sunday. Getting closer — hopefully will be able to upload the site tomorrow mid-day assuming my back and fingers don’t give out.

Dinner tonight at Shanghai Garden on 6th with cocktails before. The food is good, too good. We (Swanda) always orders way to much of this good food, and then I eat too much of this good food and come home and lay down feeling like a beached whale (and probably looking like one as well).

Not the best pictures, but the advantage of going with Swanda is that because he makes and impression on them (size and tipping), service is great, moves to the front of the line if their is a wait for tables, or maybe it’s because he orders a ton of food. Tonight we had two new dishes — moo shu shrimp (normally it’s the moo shu pork we go for) which they come and fold at the table, and some eggplant dish that was OK, but I’m not a big eggplant kinda guy. Add salt/pepper squid, some noodle dish (hand cut green barley noodles), a beef dish and you have me waddling home knowing I’m going to have to sleep mostly propped up to keep the pressure off my stomach. If there ever was a time for bulimia…

Maybe I’ll pick up some nice bug in Mexico to take care of the problem.

[223.8]

Nothing like deciding you want to chance the footer information half way through creating new pages for a website re-do… and unlike in MS-Word where you would change it once, each page if a unique collection of tables within tables within tables, not unlike a Chinese Birdhouse.

Now I just need to concentrate on not bitching about it, just getting it done by the end of the week so I can escape and just do the cleanup and tweaks next week while working on my tan.

And while we are speaking of tans — Cabo San Lucas next week, Panama in early April, and getting closer to booking my birthday cruise for the fall — as in, I now have a plane reservation. I was on-line looking at prices to San Diego for a possible business/pleasure trip (though it’s been a month and haven’t heard back about business) and decided to check out prices to Miami in September. Last time I looked it was $400+, but that was 8 months out when there are never deals — wasn’t expecting one now either, but found a $267.40 round-trip direct Seattle-Miami a couple of days before and a returning a couple of days after my cruise dates. Maybe this time I’ll get to explore Miami a bit.

For those who didn’t get my email — it’s the Norwegian Epic sailing from Miami on September 25th. At the moment the ship is 88 days from launching, so hopefully with a couple of month under their belt the bugs will be worked out (the the bed bugs not arrived yet). What make this interesting (to me) is they are offering Studios for single travellers (with it’s own bar with key card access). Here is a shot of the studio — amazing how photography can make 100 sq.ft. seem large:

My friend Barb at Pegasus Travel in lovely Lexington, Kentucky has a couple of studios and other size rooms on hold until May 28th. They are (with taxes):

• Studio are 881.60 with taxes (two held, I’m taking one of them)
• Inside J at  751.60ea  based on 2 to a room
• Balcony BF-  1041.60ea double occ
• Deluxe Balcony   D3- 1231.50- double occ

Dinner was some filet mignon and a salad — where have I heard that before:

[224.4]

Hit the ground running with the website redesign — my back and neck or sore from intense keyboard work, but it’s a bunch of billable hours, which I need. Seems the redesign is being pushed through like a health bill on Capital Hill — get out of the way it’s coming through with or without you. And problems with the direction, talk to me in December when it’s time for another refresh.

Between the hours today, and picking up two paychecks, I’m feeling a little flush (that and selling two vehicles!) Maybe it’s time to cancel that million dollar umbrella rider on my insurance policies as well — ever scheckel helps.

All packed for Cabo on Sunday, finalized a ride to the airport with DancingBear (steaks for rides, I like that) since he’s an early riser.

Not much time for anything else today except for doing a beef and asparagus stir fry (forgot to put in any of the canned Chinese vegetables — oh well) with a little wine, and an early bed-time.

[224.1]

I don’t know what was in the air this morning, but I whipped through a website redesign and was golden enough for the client to ask for implementation numbers so he could budget. From derivative to collaborative in the space of a week. But that quote is for tomorrow —- the billing period is over and I’m close to my limit.

So, that damn tub project. Today found me sewing on the back porch it was that nice out. I wanted to use the serger, but after half an hour of trying to retread it I just pulled out the beast (my mother’s college graduation sewing machine present):

Basically I took the old cover, and reworked it into the new cover. That would be an octagon into a rectangle. Seems to have worked:

Complete with tie-downs, though I have to drain and move the tub to screw in the rest of the latches. Speaking of moving the tub — when I drain it before leaving for Cabo next week, when I return (actually from Panama, different trip) I think I’ll make it “float” more in the deck — better view of the planes landing on Sea-Tac runway one (and two).

Dinner tonight was a quiet night at home — a pan-fried steak, wilted spinach, salad, split of wine.

Life is hard.

[225.2 — might be time for lipo-suction]

The folks who bought my RV are due back today… which means SOB (Son of Bob) will be leaving the front yard. With the back yard vacant of the Mommy Van (1998 Mazda MPV) it’s starting to look really lonely around here. Imagine what it will look like once the chipper, lift gate and trailer are gone as well! Guess I’d better get cracking and get them all listed on Craigslist next week.

They were due in around seven so I left the keys in an envelope on the counter in the RV and headed off to dinner with Jim and Suze.

But before I talk about the fabulous dinner, I have to tout Suze’s new book:

Portrait Painting Atelier: Old Master Techniques and Contemporary Applications

Click on the book and it will take you right to Amazon where every purchase not only puts money in Suzanne’s pocket, but mine! List price is $35.00, but Amazon has is for $23.10 (34% off), saving you $11.90.

As for dinner, pounded veal wrapped in prosciutto in a Madeira glaze reduction of shataki mushrooms, some pencil thin asparagus, salad, and a rosette chive challah with smoked sea salt crust. What a fine meal. As the last bottle of wine for the night was corked, it saved us from getting sloppy.

And yes, the RV was gone when I got home and I confirmed that it’s new owner picked it up.

[223.9]

Got the hot tub cover foil taped today, and started the process of figuring out the snaps to hold the cover down. That might happen tomorrow.

Got a call from FlufferNutter about the phone booth… seems he is interested, we just have to come to an agreement on price and timing… as he needs a place to finish the work on it that isn’this house, and the guy he is going to have do it doesn’t have shop space. Maybe I’ll try and make a joint deal for the phone booth and the trailer. He already has a pop machine so guess that’s out, though I’m guessing those will sell quickly on Craigslist.

Now what about that fat lady singing?

Tonight’s opera was Falstaff —Verdi, light comedy, odd staging that included everyone getting down to their skivvies in the final act. Sorry, no pictures.

Dinner before the show with Helene and Wonderful — thai food — lot’s of it. Can’t beleive we ate the whole thing. Two large appetizers and three mains!

Nightcap after the show at home, watched a bit of Saturday Night Live and hit the hay.

Tomorrow we start saving daylight.

[219.7]

Closer and closer the tub comes to being done….

All that’s left:

• foil seal the four sides
• add a spongy strip insulation for a better seal
• figure out some clips to keep it secure in the wind
• figure out an easier system to drain it

Guess it isn’t that close — VERY usable as it it, just adding more options (like lights and music?).

Yet another odd work project today — one that won’t be finished until the weekend.

Dinner tonight is steaks on the grill with DancingBear (which also means Manhattans and Old Fashions) with a little salad and asparagus with holandaise.

[224.1]

OK — before I get to the title of this post, just the daily update.

Out of the condo at 11:30, through the border with a 1.14 liter of Alberta Springs Rye for $19 CAN and home (with a stop at Safeway at Smokey Point) by 3:30 in time to check mail and take a nap.

OK — onto dinner….

Seared Ahi Tuna over a bed of wilted spinach and a split of 2004 Bonny Doon Le Cigar Volante. The numbers:

• Tuna: 50% seafood mark down at Safeway, end price $2.50 for half a pound (a good size tuna steak)
• Spinach: Buy 5 bags or more (mix and match), $1 a bag, I used half a bag for one person
• Wine: $6 a split on sale from last fall.

Total meal cost in round numbers? $9.00 including wine — but the wine was $6, so twice the food bill.

Best damn $9 dinner I’ve had in a long time. And healthy.

Tomorrow I work on the new (larger) hot tub cover. It’s so nice to have the back deck all organized (and clean). Hopefully SOB will be out of the front yard Sunday/Monday when the purchasers come back from their cruise.

[? ? ?]

Sleep, Eat, Work, Eat, Hang Out, Cook, Entertain, Drink, Sleep, Repeat.

That was my day — didn’t even leave the condo. Had them bring me a new coffee machine to replace the dead one. Had BamBam bring up more dishwasher detergent from the desk when he arrive. Tom showed up and immediately took a shower since he’d been running.

Pork roast over potatoes and onion, salad, wine, bread. YUM.

Today’s link it to a pitch that BabBam is making for a $2500 grant. Check it out, vote for him:

http://www.hotpinkshorts.com/contest/pitch/id/33

I would have embedded it, but I couldn’t figure out how, and you really do need to be on the site to vote.

That’s it for today, back to the States tomorrow morning. Full while it lasted.

[? ? ?]

Why 6:30am — Why am I awake at 6:30am. To many of you — what’s new about that. Me? You must be kidding. By my normal wakey wakey time I’d gotten the work that needed done today done, and showered, and thinking of breakfast.

 It’s a crisp morning here in Seattle, a layer of frost on the deck (that looks so clean and organized after yesterday’s work party).

As noon rolls around it’s time to head north to Vancouver for a couple of days of cooking for friends. Tonight is Hummingbird and Helene, tomorrow is BamBam, Tom and later Hummingbird after his church meeting.

I must make an impression on people. There I am at duty-free and I recognize the sales person, and she remembers me as well, she asked whether I was the guy who last time through was headed up to Whistler for the Olympics… good memory! We chatted for a bit — apparently her sons surprised her with hockey tickets. No small thing for hockey crazed Canadians.

No troubles at the border other than pulling out my driver’s license rather than my Nexus card. Meant I spent 30 seconds at the border rather than 15 seconds. Next stop after the border was a new one for me… looking for the IGA on Broadway hoping it has parking so I don’t have to haul two days worth of groceries the several blocks from the IGA downtown to the condo…. yes, it has parking, and something equally important, a BC Liquor Store right next door saving another stop.

Got checked in a little before 4 and people started showing up a little before 6. No rest for the wicked.

Dinner = roasted chicken, steamed veggies, bread, salad, wine, good conversation. Turns out Helene and Hummingbird live within blocks of each other.

That’s it for today.

[222.4]

The morning was spent on a website re-do that was basically shot down as:

• derivative
• not classy enough

Well — true, but it’s better than what they have, and they seem not to be able to pull the trigger and pay a pro. And I fully acknowledge that I’m not a pro — I can, however, do a quick/dirty/functional site.

But enough about work, let’s talk about pleasure. Here is the soaking tub with the surround in place:

And with the stairs I built out of leftover bamboo plywood from the kitchen:

I still need to do some more detail work on the steps, but they do a great job of hiding all the plumbing, and you can use the heater air loop as a handrail. And I need a new full-size cover.

Dinner tonight was cleaning out the fridge — steak and asparagus, no salad. Guess I’ll have to double up on the salad tomorrow night in Vancouver.

[224.8 yikes!]

As promised, here is the YouTube video of my hotel room (yes, I liked it that much):

Brunch this morning is with Julian, Jameson’s not so little brother, at Mother’s Bistro and Bar(thanks Swanda for getting us a table). Talk about crowded! Wow. Now I remember why I don’t go out to brunch on a weekend morning. But the food was worth it. It was good to catch up with Julian and hear the story of his return from India just after the underwear bomber struck…

• 88 hours to get home
• Unexpected overnight in New Delhi (fog)
• Unexpected overnight in Paris (missed connection – duh)
• Unexpected overnight in Atlanta (hours at immigration)

So the hours at immigration: recent national security incident, 20-something guy who has just spent a month in India pretty much off the grid, when he got to immigration in Atlanta they put big red marks on his form, pulled out a big envelope, put the form and his passport in it an said — “Go to that office over there.” Lots of questions, why India, what do you do for a living, what was the China trip about (passport stamp), etc… lots of second-third world stamps in his passport. Needless to say he missed his already tight connection. I’ve recommended the “Global Entry” trusted traveller program to him.

After brunch it was off to Powells for a look-see. Didn’t end up buying anything, neither did Julian.

Next stop — the train station a couple of hours early for my train, but the sleeping class passengers have access to the Metropolitan Room, basically a lounge with free wireless, coffee, pop, juice, newspapers, bathrooms, and comfortable chairs. Nice touch Amtrak. Probably only practical since all the long distance trains arrive and leave within about a four hour window at the station.

Got some work done there, and continued working for a bit on the train, drinking my complimentary champagne with orange juice. Had dinner in the Parlour Car — chipotle buffalo meatloaf. Not the best, but since it was the Parlour Car I didn’t have to share a table as I would have in the regular Dining Car. Had part of a nice bottle of Greg Norman Petite Syrah. I’ll finished the bottle with tomorrow’s dinner.

A couple of semi-drunk B-reel actors having dinner as well. Cute ,well, the younger one who apparently had a bit part in Sex Pot, and the older (mid-30’s) has been in a couple of CSI: NY episodes. The younger one seemed a little shocked when I said “You two make a cute couple.”

Arrived early — swung through the apartment to pick up travel papers for Panama and headed home for a night cap and an early bed.

[? ? ?]

So, I thought my Saturday morning was going to be some quiet time on the train to Portland, reading, working on a web-site redo, having lunch…

Until Tom Hennessey came up to me in the train station in Seattle and said hello. I’ve known Tom since my (and his) late teens in the Midwest. I hadn’t seen him in at least half a dozen years — he and his wife (and two kids, all travelling together) live in Anchorage and they caught the red-eye last night to catch the train today — also in a sleeper!

Needless to say, while the wife and kids napped from the long night, Tom and I hung out in my roomette catching up on the last few years. Too weird.

Got into Portland a little early, and was checked into the Modera by 2pm for a nap, followed by some work (to make up for what I was planning on doing on the train). The Modera is a boutique hotel right across the street from where Jamshed’s 70th Birthday Party is taking place.

Hard to tell that this used to be a Day’s Inn other than the size of the rooms. Really nice rooms, good amenities, Jill would love it for it’s mid-century feel. The only odd thing is that even though there is free wireless throughout the hotel, a local phone call (or even an 800#) costs you a buck. Odd. Maybe if I get ambitious I’ll post a video of the room tomorrow.

No post would be complete without a picture of our birthday boy:

The party ran from 6-10pm in the party room of a condo tower with heavy appetizers that took care of dinner before moving up to the condo of our hosts for another two hours with several more people dropping in.

A nightcap and it’s off to bed for me.

[223.1]

As I stuggle with billable hours — and there is a request for more (which I fulfilled today, but more tomorrow and Sunday), it’s another couple of coats on the hot tub sides, unexpected calls from everyone and their mother:

• Wonderful needing to borrow Speedos for an 8mm film project
• Jeff (my ex) and Jimmy coming by to chat after a Zippy Burger in West Seattle and taking the Lotus Elise out for a little sunshine
• Mick, in need of an Old Fashion that doesn’t cost him an arm and a leg and a roommate (actually, he would benefit from less roommates)

This while I’m trying to work on an animated GIF for a website redesign. Got most of the groundwork done, hopefully on the train tomorrow I can work on the body.

Two more coats of varnish on the hot-tub sides, which are now insulated panels held in with screws — the whole thing will be insulated, but pop a part for moving. Means one-two people can easily move the tub. But in the process, the Jag is in the alley, I’ve got the table saw pulled out, I’m making panels of glued pine and insulation, really, I should take a picture.

Hell, if I die and decide not to box and burn, it would make a nice coffin.

Mick stayed for dinner for me (additional snack for him) and a couple of Old Fashions, and more importantly, the test of whether the tub can take two people (270# and 220#, basically 500#) — I am here to report success, though I do need a pickup to bring the last panel of 4x8x2″ foam for the cover — I got the two sheets of 2x8x1.5″ panels and the 2×2 in the jag today (along with a couple of bags of charcoal, lighter fluid, liquid nails)… and the same cute seriously homo “in training” check out clerk was there at Home Depot — didnt’ see the skinny hippy boy check-out clerk, but I did look. Damn. I’m going to Home Depot for sex?

Too many run-on sentences. I have to be up early in the morning to catch a train to Portland for Jamshed’s 70th B-Day party.

[222.9]

Thank god the sun is shining — having sold the Mommy Van I now need to haul planks of lumber in the Jag. And that’s only possible with the top down.

The load today? Three 2×6′ panels of patched together pine — it should look nice with a little varnish.

By the end of the day I had both sides coated with the first coat — more to come. Let’s hope the weather holds.

Dinner tonight is a little salad with brats and sauerkraut (with mustard and horseradish), a split of wine and a little boo-tube.

[221.8]

Well. not quite, but I did jump into the tub after running money to the bank (Mommy Van sale), getting groceries, and restocking the liquor cabinet (with cash from the sale).

Now all it needs is:

• Complete the surround (buy planks, seal, screw with standoffs)
• Swing 180 degrees
• Reseal two connections
• Move back towards the fence.
• Make full cover
• Sew cover cover from left-over pieces of rip-stop from old tub.

Down side is that I will have to drain it to move it — think I’ll get all the pieces assembled and ready to screw together and THEN drain and move the tub about the same time the water needs changing.

As for dinner, I picked up some large prawns at 50% off at Safeway — seafood, 50% off, freeze or cook that day. Internet search turned up this recipe to go with the green beans that needed using:

Damn, it was tasty over a bed of saffron rice.

[223.9]

Talk about a full day. No nap time for me!

Morning = bi-weekly marketing meeting.

Afternoon = more hot-tub plumbing:

You like the duct-tape and pink rigid foam temporary tub cover? Now all I need to do is enclose it after swinging it 180 degrees so the pipes are back by the fence. Tomorrow, once it’s warm, I’ll have a shot of me in the tub.

Evening = sell another vehicle. That’s right. I’ve gone from three vehicles to one in under a week, and gotten close to NADA/Blue Book value for them. The things you do in a down economy.

Things left to sell:

• Dead chipper with good 8hp motor
• Phone booth with 1940’s phone
• Two pop machines
• 4×8 utility trailer
• Pickup truck lift gate
• And a ton of other stuff in the garage!

Dinner was VERY delayed with the sales process running til 8pm while I’m drinking bloody marys… amazing how the tomato juice replaces food — until 10pm when I fried up some fish and had a salad.

Whirlwind day — and just booking the train to Portland this weekend for a friends 70th b-day party. I have a room on the way down, a room at the Moderna which is right next to the party place, and a room back on Sunday.

And to round out this post — a picture that turned up on FaceBook that I label as “Was I Ever That Young”…

Yes, that would be me in the center.

[221.8]

OK — that sounds kinda bad. How about this. Plumbing, and then Swanda.

Update on the hot tub project:

OK — it doesn’t look like much, but I actually managed to get the drain/air system put together (and not leaking with one trip to home depot.

Well, two trips, but that was once I’d figured out how to do the tub jets since AguaQuip didn’t have any generic “eyeball” jets. My solution? I needed something with a fairly wide flange and backside nut so I could get it tight enough to the tub so it wouldn’t leak. Kitchen Hose Guides… once the Plumbers Goo is dry I’ll attach the Garbage Disposal hose adapter to the brass 3/4″FIP to Garden Hose Male Adapter and we’ll have water flow.

Another thing I realized working on this project — that I could initially fill the tub from the hot water heater drain…. preheated water — should knock a day off the warm up time for the tub, and the water heater is less than 20′ from the tub. Yahoo.

It will still take me a couple of more days on the project as I’m checking everything as I put it together for leaks etc. just in case this idea doesn’t fly… I’d had to have buy the insulation and boards to wrap the base in… and not have it work.

Dinner tonight with Swanda at his place. I brought the pork loin, bread and wine, he supplied the asparagus, salad, whiskey and my paycheck.

[221.5]

The final day of the Olympics with the spectacularly crappy NBC coverage — at least they are playing the final Gold/Silver hockey game in real time. And what a game it was, though I was also reading the New Yorker at the same time.

Wonderful came by to borrow the van (while I still have it) to pick up a couch and passed along the lovely website consisting entirely of 5 second movies. Here is one of them:

Here is the URL for the main site: http://5secondfilms.com/ Who thought you could say so much in 5 seconds.

That was my mid-day. Evening was cooking up a surf and turf (filet mignon and shrimp scampi) for Gnarlene and I. Add some salad, fresh bread, wine, and a meal you have.

[222.4]

Let the madness stop!

7:30 in the morning on of the Colonels called — if SOB didn’t sell immediately, he’d be interested in it. Yikes. That would be a wild ride — Seattle to Kentucky in the late winter, hell, it is still snowing in Kentucky.

I had a 10am appointment set up with a couple from Woodinville — luckily they didn’t show for another twenty minutes. Must have been the champagne last night. They were the ones wanting an early appointment as they were leaving tomorrow on a 14-day Princess cruise from Los Angeles to Hawaii and back. We did a little test drive around the neighborhood — I should say I drove they sat. They have owned other RVs and were looking for something with a higher ground clearance — their plan it to take it to Alaska. I’m hoping on the ferry rather than driving the AlCan Highway. And I thought Kentucky was a long run.

I unloaded dishes while they chatted outside in private — luckily it was the sunny part of the day.

Decision. Sold. I even threw in the macerator/pump and hose. I’ll have to remember show him where that plugs in. Check in hand I signed over the title. I’ll keep the RV here until they are back from the cruise (and the check clears). We could have found a branch of their bank, but this seemed easier for all of us. That and I have both sets of keys so it isn’t going anywhere!

First stop after the left? The bank. Let’s get that check moving.

Next stop? the Habitat for Humanity store to get the seriously modern bathtub I saw yesterday in my errands running around with the 15% off coupon. Tub? Why? Easier conversion to a hot-tub than the pool liner.

Might not even have to insulate this one since the walls are an inch thick — and it will be MUCH easier to make a square cover than the oddly shaped pond liner.

Third stop (after I unloaded the tub). Pick up a floor safe from Greg’s basement. Not that I really need one, but free is free and I can go back to storing my most important papers in something fireproof. Those old love letters from high school are important.

Dinner tonight is with DancingBear. Steaks on the grill, roasted red potatoes, fresh baked baguettes, spicy slaw — with his signature Old Fashions before and after the wine with dinner.

And he has a water feature he needs to install in his back yard — so there is a use for the pool liner.

[221.2]