Good morning

[travelaround]

I wake up in the middle of the night sometimes... early this morning I woke up and started listening to an audiobook memoir called Lab Girl - I'm about half way through it and she's suddenly talking about her lab assistant who is broke and decides to live in his van on the university campus where they work. Interesting to hear how that worked out. It is a very minor part of the memoir.

 

[maki2]

The weather is a big tease at this time of year. Sun comes out, nights get close to freezing cold but day is warm. Clouds come around the day is cold but the night is only a few degrees colder than the day time.

Took advantage of the dry sunny day and did a small chore on the trailer door. It has a vertical sliding window arrangement with a series of holes in the track for spring loaded detents to drop into to control the size of the open area. I had added a louvered vent at the upper end of the window but the first set of detent holes was too low. So I had to add in a new set that was higher up so the window overlapped the vent. I if had been thinking properly at the time I was making the vent I would have drilled those holes before I installed the vent because my drill motor would not have been restricted. Oh well Dremel flex shaft to the rescue, it has a much smaller diameter than the flex shaft for my drill motor. A thousand and one uses for a Dremel

Above is what the vent I added to the door looks like. It is my fresh air intake I use in the winter, early spring and fall when I want to control how much air gets in without letting the rain in too.

 

[travelaround]

Looks so nice! I like how your tent canvas matches the red of your trailer. Really impressive... have you posted before and after photos anywhere?

 

[crofter]

... have you posted before and after photos anywhere?...

I don't think we post photos in this thread. It would be difficult for some to open this thread due to the length of the thread if there were photos. Totally appropriate to post photos in a build thread though, those are much shorter than this thread.   -crofter

 

[maki2]

It is a late February out like a lion day.... heavy rain and lots of wind.  I have had the popup top on my trailer up for the last couple of days as it was mild weather but I just went out and put it back down since strong gust are predicted for this afternoon.  It has been through lots of strong gust when open so I know it can handle that but no reason to leave it up today.  I will spend the day taking some photos and writing the ads for stuff I want to sell on craigslist. That will help provide funds for finishing the renovation. Yesterday I was in a happy mood thinking about where I want to go camping this summer on my shakedown tryouts before I leave Western Washington to head south in the fall.

I have plenty of before photos but not a full set of after ones...because it is not yet "after". 
But here is a "before" image of the condition of the original pop up top. Pretty much indicative of the general condition of the trailer. The shell itself was not totaled but I did have some holes and cracks to fill in and repair. The cabinets were a splintered up wreck, broken, missing the doors, etc and they went into the dumpster. The mold on the carpet like wall coverings was horrific, rot in the floor, wiring and plumbing were a mess or missing. I gutted the inside down to the bare fiberglass shell except for about 3/4 of the plywood floor which was still OK but in need of sanding and filling.

 

[travelaround]

That's huge, Maki . . . what an amazing transformation you've done, to make it livable again, and really, better than ever, because now it is red... and more modern. Very exciting that you're capable of doing this kind of work. Are you planning to entirely empty your dwelling before you leave in your rig?

Good morning... from not a sunny Northern California, but only slightly cold.. and somewhat overcast. I need to get out in it. (Church starts in an hour with or without me, and I want to be there.)

 

[maki2]

My current "dwelling" is not one that belongs to me, I am not the tenant holder. It is my workshop mate, ie best friend, Don's place of business. So no it won't be emptied, but for my belongings I will only be leaving behinds some tools that I am not yet ready to let go of. He does not mind if I show up to spend time working on projects of my own.

Being a woman who likes to use tools and make things I have always had lots of great male friends around who are also creative thinkers and like tools and making things. That is just how my world spins around, or at least it always has so far. I am sure I will continue to make new friends out there on the road including women who enjoy doing things such as their own van build or cabin or are making things for sale as artist and crafts persons. Plus of course now there are more and more maker spaces around which could be lots of fun for a nomadic person for making new connections and learning new skills.

 

[travelaround]

Good morning everyone! Cold outside, but not overcast. I'm trying to decide what to do with my day.

 

[maki2]

An OK day today at least some forward progress on goal for the day of finishing the update to my cabinet face frame 3D CAD model. I had made some changes during the assembly process I needed to update in the model. That updated CAD model will now get used for the next stage of figuring out all the sizes and cuts for the cabinet doors and the drawer fronts.

But I did put some fun into the day with a night out with a friend to see a movie.

Looking forward to someday seeing some real visible progress such as cabinet doors on. But that will be a while yet. Because of my back not tolerating long periods of standing or bending I just keep jumping around between task, an hour on one thing, a half hour on another and lie down breaks too. It feels like I get nowhere but eventually things do get done. Guess I will wrap this day up, take the computer back inside the workshop and get some sleep.

 

[billybob200138]

Lol Hi Dean. It's Monday for God's sake? Lol..HJ

 

[travelaround]

Looks like Wednesday to me. I'm a realist. Lovely sunshiny morning here in the Klamath-Siskiyou Mountains. There's coffee in my cup and a heater nearby... I'm feeling pretty good. My new art table arrived a few days ago and I've got my first art project on it, and am going to be spending time there today.

 

[nature lover]

Its 45 degrees and rainy in PA. Not bad for February. We have some early wildflowers up and this weekend it's supposed to be in the 60's. SPRING IS EARLY!!!; Punxsutawney Phil was right. I have included a link to Vivaldi's Spring played by Itzhak Perelman. Even if you are not into classical you might enjoy this. I close my eyes and see wildflowers blooming and water trickling down the mountain when I listen to this.

 

[travelaround]

Great music, thanks. I listened to it twice.

 

[maki2]

Vivaldi's Spring the all time most popular piece of classical music for a good reason. It is pleasant to listen to.

 

[travelaround]

Any more cheery music? I'm greeting the day next to a heater . . . so grateful for warmth. Soon there will be too much of it and these coats I bought will be useless. Springtime starts in less than a month. Meanwhile, there are books to read and a yard to prepare.

 

[maki2]

Sunny day in Seattle, but not all that warm, barely 50 degrees but feels warmer in the sun. I will make use of the boost in mood the sun gives me by getting some work done on my build. I can set up a power miter saw outside without it getting wet so I will finish up with the last few pieces of the base cabinets framing I need to get done. Yesterday while putting the flooring down inside the toilet cabinet I figured out what to do for guide rails for the toilet platform so I will cut those angle pieces as well. My cabinet framing is riveted aluminum angle so I also need to run the hose back outside from the air compressor for the pnuematic rivet gun. My broken left wrist has healed enough after 5 months to get back to doing two handed work. Some of the torn muscles are still tender but these task won't stress them too much. I would have finished all this stuff last fall if it had not been for that unfortunate fall on an open hand I took.

 

[nature lover]

Maki2 said it was a sunny day in Seattle. That's hard to believe. It was a sunny Day in PA but the clouds have taken over this pm. Cold for the next couple of days but then in the 60's - I hope that forecast is right. The annual snow goose migration is on and we had over 120,000 at our wildlife management area yesterday. Anybody want a goose??‍

 

[maki2]

I get goosed by the Canadians but they are not Snow Geese. I am right by a beach on Puget Sound in the middle of a city. The geese come to the beach every day. Lots of wildlife to see at or from the beach including Orca whales now and again. A couple of years ago a Gray whale went right by here on its way into the Ballard locks, but I did not personally see it, but see video link below. Plenty of Bald Eagles come every day. Once in a great while a Snowy Owl and various other owls and hawks too. Of course Great Blue Herons are around all year every day, they are the worst when they drop huge bombs on my RV and car. Plus two types of otters, sea lions and seals and all the little sea creatures that live in shells that wash up on the beach. The gulls and crows drop all kinds of shelled creatures in the parking lot to break them open.

https://www.newsflare.com/video/686...le-spotted-swimming-in-seattles-ballard-locks

 

[travelaround]

We have a variety of creatures here in the Klamath River Valley as well Plenty of eagles. osprey and herons but no whales! That poor solitary whale must have taken a wrong turn. Hope he can refind his friends...herd... whatever. A few weeks ago there were 4 deer in my front yard and they jumped the fence and crossed the street when they saw me. Then I walked around the house and there was one more, alone. I felt so sorry for him that he was left behind. I encouraged him to go ahead and try to catch up.

Well, nearly the end of the month. Never a dull moment. I put a box with blanket in it on the back porch for one of my two outdoor cats to cuddle up in at night. Went out later and saw the neighbor's golden tom cat in there.

 

[maki2]

windy and cold today inside and out

The news is also gloomy in the Seattle region with the first cases of the Corona virus having made the leap to being spread in the community by transmission other than cases by contracted people who themselves visited China and South Korea.

Fortunately I don't have an autoimmune disorder but I do have issues with severe bronchitis if I catch even the common cold virus. I sure hope they get some effective flu vaccine shots developed for it in the near future! I will be staying on my normal winter protocol of avoiding going to public gatherings, most especially one where there are lots of children.

My friend Don went shopping at Costco yesterday at the north end of Seattle, he said it was a mad house with people lined up with multiple carts of supplies. Looks like many citizens will be going into the prepper survivalist mode.