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cycling / photo / Wednesday — Comments Off
14
Sep 16

That time I almost hurt myself in my own living room

Today, I rode my bicycle to work. Here was one of my views:

I wonder how long it might be before I won’t marvel at riding my bike to the office.

I spent a part of the day editing audio. Every time I open audio software I wonder: Will this be the time I find this boring? Hasn’t happened yet:

A view from the bike ride back to the house this afternoon:

And now a tale of housework.

We were fortunate when we purchased this place, that it is a turn key place. We’ll paint some rooms eventually, of course, but there wasn’t a lot to do when we moved our things in this summer.

We did, however, quickly discover a problem with two ceiling fans. In researching the problem we learned that the living room and master bedroom have the same type of fan, which involves a radio frequency. As in, the two fans are using the same frequency, which means that to run the light or fan in one room impacts the light or fan in the other. So one frequency had to be changed. Now, ceiling fans don’t really have makes or model numbers on them, so finding the manual, based on visually identifying the control panel in the wall, online has been a challenge. Finding the place where one changes the frequency has been an even greater challenge.

Anyway, after a day or two trying to just figure it out, and a few attempts to find the manual and infer the solution from poorly drawn diagrams, I finally gave up and called the manufacturer. I’ve called once before, but, of course, business hours. Eventually I got the right voice mail. A technician asked me to send him some pictures. He called me back and told me how to do what and where. So, then, today, I finally had the chance to follow the expert’s advice.

First, you have to break the circuit, of course. Then you shimmy up a ladder and remove the fan from the ceiling. Now I know where the adjustment must be made, and by virtue of the previous attempts via trial and error I have decided that the fan in the living room will be easiest to change.

So up the ladder, loosen the screws, take the mounting ball off the ceiling bracket and then … fall down the ladder with 35 pounds of wood and glass in my hand.

You see, the ceiling fan is equipped with a little steel hang line. With this you can suspend the fan from the bracket while you connect the wiring and, perhaps, change the remote control frequency. Only the hang line wasn’t connected to anything, so off it came and down I went. How I managed to avoid hurting myself or breaking the fan can only be attributed to quick reflexes and deft skill at not falling cultivated over a lifetime of falling. Here it is now, sitting on the floor, like all good ceiling fans:

The thing to change was tucked inside the frame there, and involved four little switches on a module the size of a dime. This was not designed to be seen from below when the fan was hanging from the ceiling. Of course, once you’ve set the thing you should never have to deal with it again. Except that the previous owners had since they either moved in or installed the fans. Later, I had to carry the fan back up the ladder and, from the highest rung, press it over my head, string the steel line, re-wire the thing and then hang it in the ceiling bracket.

Now we can turn on one fan or adjust the lights without impacting another room.

My reward was a sketchy M&M:

The next project is the hot water heater. When I finally get that figured out I’ll have a proper treat.

photo / Tuesday / windshield time — Comments Off
13
Sep 16

Just as a frame of reference

That feeling when you are paying $1.27 a gallon.

We do miss Publix — a great deal — but that Kroger gas card isn’t a bad consolation prize.

At 7 p.m. I drove to the house in the barely thinking about a sunset hour.

That’s not too bad, either.

memories / Monday / photo — Comments Off
12
Sep 16

This really takes you back

I haven’t been in a real radio studio* since 2004. And I just wrote and deleted 160 words about that. Suffice it to say, it was an important period of my career, very helpful in many ways and still impacts the work I do today. And, yet, it was a good time to move on to the next thing. If you find that theme in your career path, I figure, then you’re doing something right.

I’m doing something right.

Anyway, the three things that have been a part of every job I’ve had in my career have been, in no particular order, writing, editing and my voice. And now I’m running, among other things, this brand new production facility too:

This is a 14-channel Axia board that has four customizable configurations and push-button alterations besides. This is the nicest board I’ve ever stood over, and the muscle memory kicks in easily. This will be a production booth, a podcast facility and a part-time radio booth. (The actual radio station will join us in the building, upstairs, next year.) This room can do a lot, even in those times when it only needs to do a few things. When they designed and engineered it, they decided to build it up for anything. Eight microphones, two CDs, three computers, a turntable, a piano, two phone lines and more. I’m sure I’ll spend a small amount of time in here doing things.

*I built one in my last office and will re-construct it in my home office one day soon. I can do most of the same things in my home-studio, but it isn’t exactly the same.

adventures / cycling / Indiana / photo / weekend — Comments Off
11
Sep 16

Barns and corn and lakes and hills, all in one ride

We rode 40 miles today. This includes five significant hills and my ride falling apart about midway through for no reason whatsoever. But the company was, of course, lovely:

And the scenery was nice. Say this about this place, if you can get in a few dozen miles you can see plenty of different scenery. For example:

adventures / Friday / music / photo / running — Comments Off
9
Sep 16

We ran a race, watched balloons and saw Lee Greenwood

There was a 5K for a local hospital. We ran it. We didn’t win, but we didn’t come in last. I actually placed second in my age group. Most importantly, we finished with smiles, so who cares, otherwise?

This race was at the local fairgrounds, and I have photos to prove my alibi, should the need arise:

After the fun run the trucks came in and dumped out piles and piles of nylon and dacron. The bigger purpose of the night was bringing people out for hot air balloon rides:

And this is what I learned: Depending on how you frame or crop your shot, Yoda’s expression really changes a great deal.

Also, feel free to grab one of the above three shots if you need a new social media avatar, I guess.

There was only one Yoda balloon, but he was clearly the star of the evening for kids young and old:

I bet you could do a Star Wars hot air balloon theme. It’d be great fun, until the blasters and light sabers came out.

Also Lee Greenwood appeared. He did a three song set, by himself. No band, so karaoke, basically. Well, we think it was actually Lee Greenwood. You had to stand so far away that you couldn’t tell. And it wasn’t the crowd, which was sparse, that dictated the distance from the stage, but the drop zone. A parachutist descended with a flag to set the night off right. They mis-timed this. Greenwood hit that last “AAAAAAAAA-” said thank you and was back in his trailer and maybe on his way to tonight’s steak dinner before this guy got to the ground:

On the way home, we wondered how many times in his career Greenwood has sang that song and if that is annoying for him. So I looked up his booking rates. Let’s say the site was accurate and there is no bargaining. Let’s say his aunt isn’t the marketing agent for the county fair. Or that he didn’t lose a bet to a county commissioner. Let’s say he didn’t have to be in a nearby town the next day and that this was a just another convenient stop. (Judging by his published tour dates, he was here special.) They might have paid $25,000, for a three-song set.

You’d think that for that kinda dough he might run the chorus one more time to help the skydiver, but no.

He was already off stage, counting his money, pleased that he’s been singing that song for more than three decades now.