Random thoughts

We have had what I hope is the last snow of the year; it came yesterday and again this morning. I usually enjoy winter, or at least don't mind the cold and inclement weather. Since I do the scheduling at work, and a snow day means that everything will need to be rescheduled, those days are usually not fun but other than that inconvenience I enjoy the winter season for the most part. This year, however, I am ready for warmer air. We've had an unusually long snowy and cold winter for PA and I am a creature of change-- I don't like things staying the same for very long; the warmth of spring will be most welcome.

One thing I have accomplished this winter is converting the Monte to stick shift. The automatic trans has been in the car since 1999 and was needing some attention. Rather than spend the money of rebuilding that I decided to convert it to stick shift. What tends to happen with an automatic when a car sits a lot is that the valves and things will get sticky and hang up, and the trans will not work properly; my theory is that with a stick shift it can sit for any amount of time and work just fine. (That, and stick shift is more fun. In the words of my good friend Doug, it is a good thing to get rid of the girl-o-matic and put a man-pedal in the car.) As a side note, in the process what I have enjoyed almost more than actually working on the car is the way I funded the project. Instead of just outright buying something the cars needed, I set a goal and did work on the side to make it possible. The money for the new transmission and related parts was funded almost entirely from dumpster diving-- if I see something good in the dumpster at work, I will drag it home, post an ad on Craigslist, and wait for the phone to ring. It has worked out quite well and not just financially-- instead of just deciding I want something and buying it using our regular funds, it is very rewarding to set a goal, start at zero, and over time work my way up to that goal. Knowing that I'm doing my part to keep the landfill smaller and reduce my carbon footprint is rewarding as well. The accomplishment is now more fun than using the finished product.

Everyone says the older they get, the more they see themselves doing things just like their dad. I've said that in the past too, but now it's to the point that I find myself trying to see how much I can be like Pop. Hey, it worked for him. Some afternoon stop by the shop-- you might just find two pairs of legs soles-up above the sides of the dumpsters with a Stauffer on the other end.

The buffet table that I started last winter for Amy was finished the end of January, just in time for the Super Bowl party. It is serving us well and keeps the coffee pot and desserts well above the floor. It turned out ok for a first piece but I can't say that I am proud of it; the level of craftmanship is far from where I would like it to be.

Amy started a new blog and website for her artwork. It can be found at www.amystauffer.com She is becoming more and more talented all the time, and I am quite proud of her work. She started working with a new medium and the results are very impressive. When she began creating more works with a goal of producing income in addition to her regular job, I agreed to start doing more things around the house, mainly making meals for us. I have always had a fear of what goes on in the kitchen, i.e., I perceived it as some mysterious, elusive craft which was not to be attempted by mechanical types such as myself. Thanks to Amy's patient encouragement I have discovered it is not such a difficult thing; with a little bit of know-how and some good tools, a quality meal can be put together without too much trouble. In that respect it is just like hanging a door or doing a brake job. A few weeks ago a group of my friends and I went to a cabin for the weekend; I cooked all the food and actually enjoyed myself quite a bit doing it.

Right now our small group is studying James, and they elected me as the discussion leader one Sunday when we could not be there to defend ourselves. I picked up a few commentaries and have been studying it in depth. James has got to be one of the most practical book in the NT.

To assist in Amy's artwork she decided to get a good camera. We snagged a good deal off eBay on a Canon 40D with virtually no use. I find it very complicated to use while Amy is on it like syrup on pancakes.

Lots of big things happening this year. We have several weddings of close family and friends, there is family day which looks to be a good time once again, and we are hoping to take a trip to the western US mid-August. We'll see how that works out.