Stained Glass so far

Here's what I've done in the order I finished them.



The soldering is sloppy but I'm getting better. I'm at the literal bleeding edge of my abilities just doing basic stuff right now.

Oh yeah and that is Sharpie for the teeth of the skull. I couldn't quite pull off using wire and after burning myself twice trying I figured I'd just paint the spaces in. I think I'll be able to wash off the marker and fix it with real paint or some other way eventually. Skull version 2 will be both better and a little "darker." But that's for later.

I think I'll do Sugar Baby next. I managed to draw a very do-able design.

I have this huge "the Who" project in the works too.

I've tried to draw* a Jimi Hendrix design but it's proving much more difficult to get the face just right. He's got these little expressions that are hard to capture in bits and pieces and still be identifiable.

*by draw I mean trace using PhotoShop. I can't draw for beans.

There Will Be Blood

I have a new hobby: stained glass.

When my mother-in-law recently moved to her new home she reevaluated her arts and craft interests and asked if I’d be interested in her stained glass and all of her stained glass equipment. It took me about a nanosecond to say “yes, please.”

I might actually do a little off-shoot blog strictly for adventures in glass, linked from this one. This would involve updating two blogs and since I have enough trouble lately updating even one blog… we’ll see.

I love the whole idea of stained glass. Not only does it look pretty cool when it’s done but every step along the way is fraught with danger. Everything is either razor sharp, poisonous, or highly corrosive. Anyway, here are my thoughts on the art and serious craft of stained glass (copper foil method).

1. It’s an expensive hobby. Had I not inherited the glass and tools there’s no way I could afford to jump right in like I have. Beginner’s tool kits (including a grinder) run in the $200-300 range. Plate glass is fairly cheap to practice on but actual stained glass will set you back some serious money in a hurry.

2. Cutting glass is fun but there’s some serious skill involved in doing it correctly. It’s getting easier but it’s going to take practice, practice, practice to be really good at it. Using Photoshop I have been able to design my own patterns and I’m really enjoying that process but I was doing patterns before I realized that I shouldn’t build-in shapes which are impossible to cut by hand. I have a ring saw but I’ve been discouraged from using it until I develop some hand-cutting skills.

3. Soldering is fun but getting it right is tricky. Again it’s all about practice, practice, practice.

I currently have 3 projects working at once. One is a sun catcher which is all done but the patina. The second is a larger piece which consists of 40 squares which needs the soldering touched up, framed, then the patina applied. The third is a skull panel which is cut but not foiled yet. It’s much more complicated and I need to make sure all the intricate pieces fit as they are supposed to.

Pictures will be forthcoming.

Patience is definitely required. Patience does not come naturally to me so perhaps this will allow me to exercise it more often.

After noodling around with the glass I have new appreciation for the level of craftsmanship required to do a good quality glass project.

And yes, there has been and will continue to be blood. I am thinking of doing a panel featuring a hand with lots of glass cuts in it. We’ll see.

How to Scare your Husband Half to Death

or : When Your Poop Looks Like Coffee Grounds, Go Immediately To The Emergency Room

Short version:

Kelli has a good sized ulcer in her post-gastric-bypass stomach.

Longer version: Upon seeing aforementioned coffee-grounds-looking diarrhea Monday night at 6:30pm we went immediately to our favorite emergency room. At 2:00am Tuesday she was admitted to the hospital.

Tuesday afternoon she had an endoscopy and they discovered the ulcer and that it was eating into a blood vessel, thus the blood. They put a little clip on it to stop the bleeding. Hopefully problem solved with a change of diet and massive doses of Nexium. She should be discharged tomorrow if everything continues to go well.

~~

Now the graphic version in pictorial form. Oh and these are actual pictures of Kelli's ulcer.

First is the diagram of her insides and vantage points of the pictures:



Next are two pictures of the ulcer itself.


Next are two pictures of the insertion of this clippy thing followed by a picture of the finished area.



And I cannot make up the combination of her doctors:


anyone for a tasty meat pie?

More Pasta Pics

I'm not normally all gushy but if this isn't the most adorable picture you have seen today something is wrong with you.

Sammy is the redhead and Christopher has the dark hair.

Congratulations Mama and Papa Pasta, you done good!

Buon Compleanno al Gemelli

Gemelli is a type of pasta and is also the Italian word for "twins."

Congratulations to the whole Pasta Family and most especially to Sammy and Chris, the tiny Texan twins born June 12, 2008. (both pictures are of Sammy but hey - they are twins; Chris looks just like his brother).

While it appears Sammy is giving a nurse the malocchio, sources at the scene say he was just winking. We'll see. (click the pictures for a larger version).

For those who like numbers they are both 3 lbs 12 ounces and 16 inches long. Both are Texans by the odd coincidence that mom and dad were with one of the twins' older sisters in Texas having surgery at the time they decided to greet this new world. Having Texans for children was not the original plan for Mama and Papa Pasta but they'll adjust and begin the re-education process in their much larger home state soon enough.

For praying types, you might include the twins in those prayers since they are so small but reports are that they're going to be a-okay after a little TLC in the NICU for the next 4 to 6 weeks.

To the entire Pasta family:

Congratulations and come home soon!
You have an adoring public who wish to shower you with gifts and love (but not in a creepy way).

Gemelli photos: Wikipedia Commons

Herb Shaindlin, re-mix

Evidently when you search "Herb Shaindlin" on Google, you get my blog as the number one match.

On one hand, yay me!

On the other hand, two people have recently emailed me to ask if my post was a eulogy.

update October 4, 2008 - It is with great sadness I report that Herb Shaindlin has indeed passed away. His family has set up a MySpace site for people to share stories and wishes at www.myspace.com/herbshaindlin

Here's the original item I wrote plus several pictures of a plaque I sent him via one of his daughters whom I am lucky to have as a coworker.

It's nice to have heard from so many people about how much they enjoyed the Public Opinion Hotline but I have to point out that I'm just a fan.

~~
the following was originally posted October 2, 2005:


Herb Shaindlin’s talk radio program "The Public Opinion Hotline," which aired on AM 750 KFQD for most of my life and certainly all of my formative years, educated me in more ways than I have time to list on this post so I’ll give you just a few examples:

One is that Herb’s program introduced me to the works of Stephen King, Tom Lehrer, Spike Jones, Robert Service, and many other artists. One taste of each of these artists led to exploring most of their works and works of similar artists. In this way he set my compass on the course I have taken ever since.

The second is that he told stories of his life. Many of these stories rattle around in my head to this day.

Last night I saw a helicopter fly past my house at relatively low altitude, creating a certain amount of noise in its wake. From its direction of travel (and the few helicopters that would have any reason to fly over my house) I could identify it as the LifeGuard Air Ambulance.

As I watched it pass I had to smile as I was reminded of one of Herb’s stories. If memory serves, the story goes like this:

When Herb was growing up in Brooklyn, New York, he would constantly hear the wailing of all types of sirens: police sirens, ambulance sirens, fire engine sirens. He once asked his mother if the sirens bothered her or worried her because every siren meant that there had been a crime or an accident where someone was probably hurt.

Her response was a surprising “No.” She explained, “Every time I hear a siren I don’t get mad because it is interrupting my peace and quiet; rather I am happy because I know that someone is racing as fast as they can to help someone else. Sirens are a happy sound.”

Ever since hearing this story (at least 20 years ago) I have smiled a little when I hear a siren. And now I smile at helicopter noise too.

Thanks Herb, you are the very best.

~~
the plaque was completed June of 2007

Sad Lemons? Diabolical Lemonade!!

Fake bus stop keeps Alzheimer's patients from wandering off

From the Telegraph.co.uk

By Harry de Quetteville in Berlin

Last Updated: 11:11PM BST 03/06/2008

The idea was first tried at Benrath Senior Centre in Düsseldorf, which pitched an exact replica of a standard stop outside, with one small difference: buses do not use it.

The centre had been forced to rely on police to retrieve patients who wanted to return to their often non-existent homes and families.

Then Benrath teamed up with a local care association called the "Old Lions". They went to the Rheinbahn transport network which supplied the bus stop.

"It sounds funny but it helps," said Franz-Josef Goebel, the chairman of the "Old Lions" association.

"Our members are 84 years old on average. Their short-term memory hardly works, but the long-term memory is still active.

"They know the green and yellow bus sign and remember that waiting there means they will go home."

The result is that errant patients now wait for their trip home at the bus stop, before quickly forgetting why they were there in the first place.

"We will approach them and say that the bus is coming later and invite them in for a coffee," said Richard Neureither, Benrath's director. "Five minutes later they have completely forgotten they wanted to leave."

The idea has proved so successful that it has now been adopted by several other homes across Germany.

~~
This is a brilliant idea. Dementia patients wandering off is a huge problem.

The fake bus stop does nothing to infringe upon the patient's rights and allows them to retain their dignity while still keeping them safe.

Talk about thinking outside the box.

Abortion: The Green Friendly Option

Look HERE , it's hilarious.

It's also satire so lighten up.

courtesy of The Downloadable Ryan Garns

Craigslist: Buyer Beware

I talked to two separate people today who found cars for sale on Craigslist and got ripped off.

I firmly believe people are essentially good-hearted but here is the most helpful tip with regard to buying things from private parties:

Actually take possession of the item at the time of sale.
No Goodies = No Money.

Don’t send someone money, especially through PayPal, ahead of time. I mention PayPal specifically because they are not a bank and therefore play by their own rules. In the event of fraud their obligation to you would be different than a credit card.

Think about PayPal (or sending a check even) like promising to put money under a rock then coming back to that rock the next day to find your item. And good luck with that plan.

Craigslist is a great way to buy/sell items but remember that there are folks out there who are actively trying to steal your money. Like eBay a year or so ago, it’s the hot new forum for fraud.

Incidentally there are other important things about buying cars. For one you will want the title and a bill of sale. It'd also be nice to have every piece of ID you can possibly verify for the selling party in case it all goes bad and you need to track them down later.

And A Chicken Shall Lead Us

Yes, okay I'm stealing this. It was taken from Avert Your Eyes but she stole it from someone else. Enjoy:

Q: Why did the chicken cross the road?

*_BARACK OBAMA:_*
The chicken crossed the road because it was time for a CHANGE! The
chicken wanted CHANGE!

*_JOHN MC CAIN:_*
My friends, that chicken crossed the road because he recognized the
need to engage in cooperation and dialogue with all the chickens on the
other side of the road!

*_HILLARY CLINTON:_*
When I was First Lady, I personally helped that little chicken to cross
the road. This experience makes me uniquely qualified to ensure --
right from Day One! -- that every chicken in this country gets the
chance it deserves to cross the road. But then, this really isn't about
me.......

*_DR. PHIL:_*
The problem we have here is that this chicken won't realize that he
must first deal with the problem on 'THIS' side of the road before it
goes after the problem on the 'OTHER SIDE' of the road. What we need to
do is help him realize how stupid he's acting by not taking on his
'CURRENT' problems before adding 'NEW' problems.

*_OPRAH:_*
Well, I understand that the chicken is having problems, which is why
he wants to cross this road so bad. So instead of having the chicken
learn from his mistakes and take falls, which is a part of life, I'm
going to give this chicken a car so that he can just drive across the
road and not live his life like the rest of the chickens.

*_GEORGE W. BUSH:_*
We don't really care why the chicken crossed the road. We just want
to know if the chicken is on our side of the road, or not. The chicken
is either against us, or for us. There is no middle ground here.

*_COLIN POWELL_*:
Now to the left of the screen, you can clearly see the satellite
image of the chicken crossing the road...

*_ANDERSON COOPER - CNN:_*
We have reason to believe there is a chicken, but we have not yet
been allowed to have access to the other side of the road.

*_JOHN KERRY:_*
Although I voted to let the chicken cross the road, I am now against
it! It was the wrong road to cross, and I was misled about the chicken's
intentions. I am not for it now, and will remain against it.

*_NANCY GRACE:_*
That chicken crossed the road because he's GUILTY! You can see it in
his eyes and the way he walks.

*_PAT BUCHANAN_*:
To steal the job of a decent, hardworking American.

*_MARTHA STEWART:_*
No one called me to warn me which way that chicken was going. I had a
standing order at the Farmer's Market to sell my eggs when the price
dropped to a certain level. No little bird gave me any insider
information.

*_DR SEUSS_*:
Did the chicken cross the road? Did he cross it with a toad? Yes, the
chicken crossed the road, but why it crossed I've not been told.

*_ERNEST HEMINGWAY:_*
To die in the rain. Alone.

*_JERRY FALWELL:_*
Because the chicken was gay! Can't you people see the plain truth?'
That's why they call it the 'other side.' Yes, my friends, that chicken
is gay. And if you eat that chicken, you will become gay too. I say we
boycott all chickens until we sort out this abomination that the liberal
media whitewashes with seemingly harmless phrases like 'the other
side.' That chicken should not be crossing the road. It's as plain
and as simple as that.

*_GRANDPA:_ *
In my day we didn't ask why the chicken crossed the road. Somebody
told us the chicken crossed the road, and that was good enough.

*_BARBARA WALTERS:_*
Isn't that interesting? In a few moments, we will be listening to the
chicken tell, for the first time, the heart warming story of how it
experienced a serious case of molting, and went on to accomplish its
life long dream of crossing the road.

*_ARISTOTLE:_*
It is the nature of chickens to cross the road.

*_JOHN LENNON:_*
Imagine all the chickens in the world crossing roads together, in
peace.

*_BILL GATES:_*
I have just released eChicken2007, which will not only cross roads,
but will lay eggs, file your important documents, and balance your check
book. Internet Explorer is an integral part of the Chicken. This new
platform is much more stable and will never cra...#@&&^(C% .........
reboot.

*_ALBERT EINSTEIN:_*
Did the chicken really cross the road, or did the road move beneath the
chicken?

*_BILL CLINTON:_*
I did not cross the road with THAT chicken. What is your definition of
chicken?

*_AL GORE_*
I invented the chicken!

*_COLONEL SANDERS_*:
Did I miss one?

*_DICK CHENEY:_*
Where's my gun!

You Stoner Idiot

Alaska is a very liberal state with regard to marijuana possession and usage in your own home. I’m cool with that although I’m a food junkie so adding marijuana to the mix would simply exacerbate my issues. Oh yeah and my job prohibits it. So problem solved.

So if you indulge in a little ganja now and then – hey, smoke it if you got it. Yet if you drive down the highway with a bong on your lap taking hits as you drive, you are a complete moron. And when several citizens call to report your stupid ass, simply putting the bong under a coat in your passenger seat just before the office behind you turns her lights on to pull you over is a weak plan at best.

Personally I don’t believe we need to waste (if you pardon the pun) any jail space on your flea-ridden ass but I firmly believe you need a little walking / bus riding time under your belt.

Oh and your nasty patchouli is a) not making your drug use invisible and b) more annoying than the smell of stale marijuana smoke.

Living The Dream

I am fascinated by people who feel “called” to do something.

Patti DiVita had such a calling, in her case to make a positive film about restaurant wait staff. The result is “Did I Say Thousand Island?”

Here is a quote from her website:

Hi, I'm Patti DiVita. I'm a waitress, not a filmmaker. But I know I was called to make this movie. It's a romantic comedy, based on the incredible things I've seen in 30 years as a waitress.

I knew zippo zilch nothing about making a movie. So I read everything I could about how to make an independent film.

It was crazy. Everything about this movie just kept falling into place. I got actors and crew through word of mouth.

When I was writing, I felt like an antenna. The movie was already out there and I was the one who got to write it. I don’t care what you call it — synchronicity, the universe putting it in my way, for me it’s God. I'm not looking for world peace, but how about a little politeness?

Here’s a nice little article about the movie and the waitress behind it.
Waitressing: The Good, Bad, and Ugly

Download her movie or, better yet, buy her DVD.

also:

Celebrate: National Waiters and Waitresses Day (which was May 21)

On that note, your friends at the Panic Blog wish to remind you:

Servers are not servants.

They put up with your bullshit because they are paid to do so.
Part of that payment is in the form of tips so please tip appropriately.
By appropriate I mean well.

Addressing An Important Problem

Caller: I need help

Police: What’s your address?

Caller: 1234 Main St

Police: Is that a house or an apartment?

Caller: an apartment

Police: (incredulous after all these years) is there an apartment number?

Caller: number 8

This exchange happens at least dozen times a day, every day and it drives me crazy.

The hint is when I ask you if you are in a house or an apartment.
You’re supposed to say, “oh yes. I’m sorry. I should have mentioned I am in apartment 8.”

Your apartment number is

ALWAYS

part of your address.

Tack this up next to your phone if you need the reminder.

**
Oh and these are just regular ol' business line calls, not 911.

How Owning A Condo Can Devastate You Financially

My grandmother owns a 1 bedroom apartment style condominium unit in a two-building 100-unit condo association in a very desirable part of Los Anchorage. In 2007 her property tax assessment was $210,700.

Last June a plumber’s apprentice, not being supervised appropriately, accidentally started a fire which caused one of the buildings (approximately 50 units) to be considered a total loss. Luckily my grandmother lives in the other building. 50 families have no homes now but still are required to pay their condo dues (which are in excess of $400 per month).

Here’s where her luck stops:

It turns out the condo association was drastically under-insured – somewhere between $4,000,000 and $10,000,000 under-insured. Guess who is going to make up the difference?

Winner, winner, chicken dinner – you guessed it: grandma (and 99 of her closest neighbors). She was just notified by the condo board of directors that all owners should expect a special assessment of about $70,000 (middle ground of the two ends of the shortfall continuum).

70,000 dollars. That’s a lot of tall green.

Who can afford to write a $70,000 check? Chances are if any of the condo owners in her association could write such a check they’d be living in an even more desirable area of town.

After the fire (but before the consequences of the fire were fully known) my grandmother obtained “special assessments insurance” which would cover such a check but it’s doubtful they’d cover an assessment for an event which occurred before coverage started.

Either way there are lots of people who are not merely screwed but really most sincerely screwed.

For the foreseeable future no one will be able to sell their condo. Who’d buy such a thing with that special assessment time bomb coming? And since they don’t have any real idea how much that assessment is going to be, how would you put a value on the property? Would any title company clear the property for a mortgage company?

Speaking of mortgages, my grandmother owns her condo outright. For those who still have mortgages on their property they will need to take out and additional $70K loan. Ouch.

This will take years to sort out. A lot of owners are elderly and frankly a lot of them will be dead and buried before the final bill becomes due. Imagine the estate nightmare.

The only positive thing is that her 2008 tax assessment is $160,000. Hooray. Sort of.

***

Fun fact: if you are under-insured you are soundly penalized. It’s called “co-insurance” and what it means is that if you are under-insured then the insurance company assumes you are self-insuring the rest. If you have a claim they will pay based upon the percentage of co-insurance they cover.

It breaks down like this. Say when you bought your house it was valued at and insured for $150,000. But now say your property has appreciated (through natural market forces or by improvements or whatever) such that the house is now worth $200,000 but the insurance was never modified to reflect that. The insurance company is going to assume you meant to be only 75% insured.

So let’s image that Hurricane Jimminy comes by and blows part of your roof off. The cost of the roof repair is $10,000. The insurance company is only going to pay $7500 less your deductible.

Who’s responsible for keeping up with whether you are properly insured? You. If it’s a condo association then it’s the condo association board of directors. In the case of my grandmother’s condo the insurance broker might have some liability but that’s only if he didn’t follow his rules and responsibilities to notify. I’m certain that each board member will be sued. Another reason not to be on the board.

Stop The White On Rice Violence

Rice, at times a symbol of asceticism, will soon be a symbol of affluence.

The Great Rice Panic of 2008 is upon us, ladies and gentlepersons, and the Panic Blog is here to provide you moment by moment coverage of the ongoing side dish debacle from our PanicTracker9000 Mobile News Center (aka my SUV which is only two years younger than the SUV of my least favorite Los Anchorage panhandler).

My wife works at a BigAssed Membership Warehouse Store and these are her observations from the battlefield.

Thursday there were two people having a tug of war over the last BigAssed bag of rice and said bag ripped, spilling rice all over the aisle. Security, or the biggest loss prevention guy, had to separate the combatants. Oh yes, and someone else bought the damaged bag of rice.

Every morning people have been crowding the front doors prior to the store opening, ready to stampede like they’re at a Who concert. They shout to the employees going into work “hey, do you have any rice today?” People are taking rice out of other people’s carts in the store. There have been several fights.

It’s not just her store. Stores all over town are running out of rice. Small Fashionable Yuppie Asian Market didn’t have any white rice for sale, just small packets of wild rice. And wild rice isn’t even rice, it’s like twigs and dirt and stuff.

The Powers That Be tell us there is no actual shortage of rice just a perceived shortage. Well, brothers and sisters, perception is reality. It’s easy to be an existentialist in the foxhole of a Grain War.

Will this escalate into rampaging violence in the streets? Shall we form the Minute Rice Men? Will Uncle Ben have to gird his loins for battle? Where will this end?

Oh the humanity.

Myspace Code Generator

and hey, the Los Anchorage Daily News has a story today on the same topic.. great minds, eh? Here's the story:

Rumors of rice shortage spur daily rush at Anchorage stores

~~
Monk receiving breakfast rice in begging bowl photo: www.kheper.net

Uncle Ben photo: www.racewire.org

Lovin' Alaska

Yesterday the lawn was completely clear of snow and the day before it was 60 degrees.
Most folks have already replaced their studded snow tires with their summer tires.

Today it has snowed a foot and we expect another foot by tomorrow morning. And it's that heavy wet heart-attack snow.

Work tomorrow is going to be nothing but accidents and vehicles in ditches.

Yum.

Another Panhandler Story

This one from Salt Lake City, Utah

Needy or Greedy? Panhandler Seen By 2News Living In Sugar House

The story describes a young woman who makes, roughly, $50 per hour and instead of being homeless, as her sign suggests, she lives at her mother's house.

I'm a liberal so I'm all for charity. Do I give enough to charitable organizations? Nope. Should I give way more? Yup.

But, as I've said many times before (list of panhandler stories), panhandlers piss me right off.

You've been warned, people, if you give money to panhandlers you are perpetuating the problem. You are being duped. You are undoubtedly a well-meaning person but you are being taken advantage of. Oh and here's a story out of Denver, Colorado with more numbers.

Better to spend you money on hookers, at least they WORK for a living.

~~
Photo: http://www.sptimes.com/2007/01/19/Pasco/Got_beer_He_could_use.shtml

A Baby Boy For Skinny G

Alaska Governor Sarah "Skinny G" Palin is the proud mother of newborn boy:

Trig Paxson Van Palin

The story is here: Gov. Palin gives birth to son

It remains unclear where "Trig" comes from but "Paxson" is a teenie-tiny Alaskan town north of Glennallen (which is also a tiny town).

And yes, the "Van" is because "Van Palin" sounds cool to the Governor who loves her 80's rock bands.

Best wishes to Skinny G and the whole Palin clan from her friends at the Panic Blog

Never Mess With an Angry Chicken Flinger

Clemson woman allegedly acts out during Wal-Mart termination process

By Pearce Adams (Contact)
Originally published 10:49 a.m., March 31, 2008
Updated 10:49 a.m., March 31, 2008

ANDERSON — A Clemson woman is facing charges of going “postal” at Wal-Mart in Anderson, causing $2,800 in damage when store managers terminated her from her job in the store's delicatessen.

Shanay Buie allegedly became upset about 3:30 p.m. Friday at 3812 Liberty Hwy.

“She returned to the deli and threw 2 chickens at 2 customers,” according to the
incident report. “At that time, she also threw on the ground 2 printers worth about $1,000 each. She also threw to the ground 2 sets of dishes worth about $400 a set.”

An arrest has not been made, according to records at the Anderson City Jail.

~~~
News from The Independent Mail
buy your own Slingshot Flying Chicken with Scream Sound
(and I don't get anything for shilling for them but since I'm using their picture it seems only fair to plug them)

Silly Poetry Saturday

not haiku, just three line poems

Your warm embrace protects me

like gelatin surrounding Vienna Sausages

to prevent their damage in transit

***

Gas prices are high

but not as high as the gas price paid

after eating too much Mexican food

Photos

Vienna Sausages

Mexican Food