Archiving leftover family photos to close out October 2023
RichC | October 31, 2023
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Archive: Memories from our October 2023 beachy vacation
RichC | October 29, 2023
Before the photos from our October 2023 vacation to Florida are buried too deep on my phone, I’ll use this weekend post as is an excuse to archive them. Brenda and I had great weather for most of our vacation and enjoy many days walking on Delray Beach. She has recovered from hip surgery impressively […]
Archive: A couple of Corn-Mazing granddaughters
RichC | October 25, 2023
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Archiving a weekend wedding photo of Taylor and his college buds and an impressively engineered antique candle snuffer
RichC | October 24, 2023
The title of this post is a little disjointed, but since I don’t have all that much to say about either topic, I’m putting them in one post. First, Taylor stretched out a long weekend with Megan in Key Largo Florida with his fraternity buddies at a wedding … and second, I’m just impress with […]
Beach vacations are restful and a necessary recharge for me
RichC | October 18, 2023
Although a new iPhone14 or 15 would make the quality of photos a little better, my old iPhone7plus is still chugging along. I haven’t taken a panoramic for a while, so rather than go the selfie route (Brenda veto-ed the photo we took) for today’s vacation blog post. So I’ll post a Delray Beach pano […]
The ablity to memorize passes to the next generation #TBT
RichC | September 28, 2023
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Archive: Leftover photos from closing pool and cleaning filters
RichC | September 27, 2023
It is that time of year … Autumn is here and the leaves are starting to fall. I cut the lawn and closed the pool last weekend, hopefully before the bulk of the leaves started to fill up the pool. The weather has been nice and just the right temperature for yardwork. BUT … I […]
Router Table spline slot cutting and micro adjustment ideas
RichC | September 26, 2023
Here’s another idea for the router table that might work better than the table saw for cutting splines in the corners of small frames, simple drawers and boxes. I usually struggle with lining up and clamping framed boxes multiple times using my table saw and a tendon jig (with box that cuts splines) and thought something […]
It looks like it’s time to clean out the birdhouse? #TBT
RichC | September 21, 2023
It is humorous to see just how much a bird can put in the bluebird birdhouse that the granddaughters and I made back in 2020 (hence, the Throwback Thursday #TBT photo at left from 2020). It was completely stuffed full when I took it down from the pole at their house last week. My plan […]
Woodworking Ideas: Family heirloom Nesting Table example
RichC | September 17, 2023
Oostra House getting paint early in September 2023 While babysitting at my daughter’s house last week, a conversation with Brenda shifted to an heirloom “nesting table” woodworking project idea. Katelyn inherited the small tables made by her Jamestown, NY furniture making great grandfather Holmstrom and treasures them as much as Brenda and MomH did (photo […]
Tinkering with my Router Table jigs and an OLD new idea
RichC | September 10, 2023
A couple of my short “cheap” T-tracks arrived last week that I’m planning to use for either a router table or table saw jig … or both? I’m not sure exactly how I’m planning to integrate them yet, but I have been collecting a few idea. Initially I was going to use them for featherboard […]
Archive: A quick trip to NW Ohio to watch the girls this week
RichC | September 9, 2023
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Archive: Our family together for Labor Day while Taylor was backpacking in Glacier National Park with a friend
RichC | September 6, 2023
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Earl’s Sinclair Gas and Auto Service Station – Toledo Ohio #TBT
RichC | August 24, 2023
While visiting with my extended family at my Uncle Sonny’s Celebration of Life earlier this month, a few of us exchanged phone numbers so we could better stay in touch. My cousin Dan forwarded a paper that highlighted my Grandfather Corbett’s Sinclair gas station and Earl’s Auto Service in South Toledo. It was interesting to […]
Our granddaughters are heading back to school and smiling!
RichC | August 23, 2023
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An ebook and two photos from my friend Jeff for #TBT
RichC | August 17, 2023
My friend Jeff and I regularly talk about the books we are reading over lunch or on the back porch (too infrequent though) and he sent me one to read last week. I told him I would start as soon as I finished Pappy Boyington’s “Baa Baa Black Sheep” that I’m thoroughly enjoying. “Conservatism, A […]
Archive: Celebration of Life for Uncle Sonny and a stop on the way home in Perrysburg to sing Happy Birthday to Brenda
RichC | August 14, 2023
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Archive: Bought a new Ridgid 18V Cordless string trimmer
RichC | August 13, 2023
It is late in the summer grass cutting season to be buying a new piece of lawn equipment, but keeping my favorite weedwacker going has finally gotten the best of me. If it were a normal lawn season and turning dry by August, this might not be a problem … but the regular rains this […]
“Let’s Ride!” Although this probably not the “kind of ride” the phrase was intended for … but Happy Birthday Brenda
RichC | August 12, 2023
Although by the time “we” get to these years, celebrating another birthday isn’t the same as it was when we were pinning tales on donkeys, wearing cone shaped hats and eating as much cake and ice cream as we wanted. I asked Brenda how she wanted to celebrate her birthday and it was more like […]
Obit: A Celebration of Life for my Uncle Sonny (Earl D. Corbett)
RichC | August 10, 2023
My dad’s younger brother, my Uncle Sonny, passed away in his home on July 20, 2023. He lived a full life, had a loving family and enjoyed living on a small southern Michigan lake for much of his life. I remember him most clearly from when I was a boy as the energetic and high […]
Kubota ZD326 zero-turn mower repaired and semi-serviced
RichC | August 9, 2023
Fifteen years for a diesel mower in my book is not old, but it does seem to be about the time for parts to wear and repairs to start (or continue). Last week was the second time that I’ve had to replace the fuel pump on our Kubota ZD326s zero-turn mower. The Kubota has been […]
Florida homeowners hit hard by insurance premiums
RichC | August 8, 2023
Archiving an article from last week’s Barron Magazine which highlighted what I’ve been noticing with homeowner insurance rates on our condo in Florida. When I called the agent about the increase last year, she commented that I should be thankful for the increase as it was on the lower side compared to most. Yikes .. […]
Archive: Summer vacation and hiking in Zion National Park
RichC | August 8, 2023
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Archive: Family photos and visiting NW Ohio as move nears
RichC | August 6, 2023
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Project planning: A box for my dad’s military service flag
RichC | August 5, 2023
The making of a traditional black walnut box, for the military service flag I was presented at my father’s funeral, has long been on my mind. As I close in on almost a decade since his passing and the flag still lives in the plastic holder provided by the funeral home. It has been my […]
Archive: The Oostras short summer 2023 vacation to Michigan
RichC | July 19, 2023
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Weekend leftovers: Paslode battery project and fence repairing
RichC | July 18, 2023
Nothing earth shattering from the working around the house projects, but archiving a couple photos from staining a section of last years repaired fence … to more repairing of fences as well as using TiteBond 3 glue as before (this could be a forever project — our fences are deteriorating A LOT). I was going […]
Summer storms have been blasting through with a lot of wind
RichC | July 11, 2023
We’ve had several short-lived summer storms blasting through this year. Often I wrap up my sun sail in the back of the pool house garage (use it for a little shade), but didn’t last week. Unfortunately some VERY high winds hit and stretched out my homemade bungee (steel cable inside rope) and bent the hooks […]
Archive: A great time in Perrysburg with our granddaughters
RichC | July 8, 2023
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Workshop tips and project ideas, with no particular need
RichC | July 1, 2023
Before I archive clipped workshop tips and ideas to a computer folder (saved in a place I will never look again => #humor), ideas that I’ve snipped from a variety of library borrowed woodworking magazines, I’m going to save them to my blog. If I were sharing and posting correctly, I would footnote or at […]
Annalyn and Ellerie with Oma and Bompa Summer 2023
RichC | June 26, 2023
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My 40 year old bicycle is now rideable again
RichC | June 20, 2023
Around the year Brenda and I were married (1982), we bought a couple of bicycles to ride around Aurora, Ohio where we bought our first house. Her 10-speed has long since disappeared (perhaps garage sale) but we kept mine through the years. It is a bit on the heavy side, but my Jamis bike was […]
Happy Father’s Day with a few leftover garage sale photos
RichC | June 18, 2023
It was an end of the week “Safety Town graduation” and garage sale for Katelyn, Brenda and the girls (and Saturday sale for Drew) as they “unloaded” some stuff before having to move it. They did well and on top of it was a great time to be together (from what I’ve heard). All in […]
Woodworking: Restarted the Octagon Side Table project
RichC | June 17, 2023
Since the Cornhole game project for Taylor’s birthday is finished … and because we had a little bit of rain … I decided to restart work on the Octagon side table. The challenging eight-sided top was finished a couple months ago, but not the legs. The legs need to be sturdy enough to hold the […]
Archive: We had a great time celebrating Taylor’s Birthday
RichC | June 13, 2023
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Busy weekend at our house so just archiving photos
RichC | June 11, 2023
We are with family and friends for Taylor’s Birthday this weekend and suspect I won’t have time to post on Saturday … so I’m clearing out and archiving a few photos in my “possible blog archive folder” that have collected from the week. First was a photo from western New York where my nephews Justin […]
Happy Birthday Taylor. Embrace the change this year.
RichC | June 10, 2023
It is hard to believe Taylor, our youngest, is celebrating another birthday (although better than not having them) and that he was born AFTER the long running television show (1952-1989) American Bandstand ended. It just so happens that Taylor was born a month after Dick Clark finished the final episode … it does not seem […]
Archive: Coffee and then mixing compost and planting flowers
RichC | June 7, 2023
Who doesn’t smile when waking up to a cup of coffee in the morning — oh, I can smell it now. I know I do … and would be shocked if it actually smiled back! Really this is just adding to the archive in getting the yard ready for summer and the family this weekend. […]
Books: Started my birthday book as a Sunday devotional read
RichC | June 6, 2023
The above subject line of this post needs to be clarified a bit as I “only started” to read my birthday present book on Sunday … but it will be excellent. The new birthday gift book, “God’s Bible Timeline: The Big Book of Biblical History” from Katelyn, Drew and family should be an enjoyable one […]
A Music Monday Happy Anniversary with “Open Arms”
RichC | June 5, 2023
Once upon a time, I would have defaulted to “Happy Anniversary Baby” by The Little River Band … but as the idiom goes, “been there, done that“ in a 2014 post. So to wish Brenda a Happy Anniversary, this Music Monday I’ll zero in on the year we were married and opt for “Open Arms” by […]
Taylor settled into his new office in Batavia Township, Ohio
RichC | June 3, 2023
What a super nice office and comfortable place for Taylor to work. I find myself envious of his new position as “Director of Planning and Zoning” in Batavia Township, Ohio. As a parent, it is rewarding to see your children excelling in their careers and appreciated by those they work for and with. I’m confident […]
Our six-year old granddaughter’s dance recital weekend
RichC | May 24, 2023
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Minor issues upgrading Brenda’s iPhone7 to an iPhone14
RichC | May 16, 2023
Something unanticipated happened last weekend when secretly trying to prepare a new iPhone14 to give to Brenda for Mother’s Day … it was likely the busiest time for wireless cellphone towers … especially if on Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO). In other words, the day I gave Brenda the new phone to play with was […]
Angel Food Cake, Strawberries and Whipped Cream Leftovers
RichC | May 9, 2023
Although few of us getting older really want to spend too much time highlighting “yet another” birthday, last weekend was mine … so I celebrated by hauling 68 pounds of aluminum cans to the recycler (above). Since we were with KDAE the previous weekend … and Taylor stops in regularly (twice this past week) and […]
After 8 years as a Clermont County Planner, Taylor has accepted a new position in Batavia Township, Ohio
RichC | May 2, 2023
It is a bitter sweet departure from Clermont County for my son Taylor. He has grown professionally and enjoyed his job as Planner for the last 8 years after moving back to Ohio from Williston, ND (being a Planner for Williams County was his first job out of college). He has been patient and taken on […]
Archive: A brief overnight stay from KDAE as they head home
RichC | May 1, 2023
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KDAE were hiking in the Smokies as we returned from Florida
RichC | April 27, 2023
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Archive: Catch-up photos from April 2023 trip to Florida
RichC | April 23, 2023
A trip to Florida would not be compete without at least one timeline marking photo of us … so this catch-up post with a few leftover photos from our “condo window installation” trip will start with a Brenda and Rich beach photo. Between a few rain and heavy wind days, we had some sunny and […]
Archive: The new condo windows have finally been installed
RichC | April 22, 2023
We have had our share of rain in Florida this April while in Delray Beach, but have finally finished the upgrade of new windows in the condo. I should have done it back in 2018 as I would have save a few thousand dollars, but as the saying goes … “better late than never” (they […]
Archive: Family photos from weekend text messages
RichC | April 4, 2023
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April 1st, but no fooling as roof shingles are damaged
RichC | April 1, 2023
We have had several windstorms in recent days and weeks, but I didn’t notice the missing ridge cap shingles until last week (not noticeable in this photo). Shockingly it has been 8 years since we put on a new roof, but I was thankfully able to track down the company who installed it and they […]
Presentation by Taylor and time with our granddaughters
RichC | March 26, 2023
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Archive: Homemade band sander idea for the workshop
RichC | March 22, 2023
Archive: The Cornhole woodworking project was a success
RichC | March 7, 2023
For years now, I’ve been planning to make a set of Cornhole boards for the backyard when entertaining in the summertime, but never really wanted to just slap together construction grade 2 x 4s and plywood. So when thinking about a project gift for my granddaughters 3rd and 6th birthdays this year, who are now […]
Archive: Leftover family and condo photos from the past week
RichC | February 26, 2023
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Archiving: Saving woodworking condo side table idea
RichC | February 19, 2023
While at the condo in Florida this past week, Brenda was searching for a side table and lamp to replace the very ugly and cheap one between the couch and chair (photo right). She found one online that was way overpriced for "particle board or manufactured wood." I’m not a fan and mentioned that it […]
Archiving a few WWII B-26 Marauder videos
RichC | February 9, 2023
Here are a couple of B-26 Martin Marauder YouTube videos to archive (saved to personal cloud too) due to my interest in aviation and military history … but also because my late father-in-law serving as navigator on “this beautiful ship” in World War II (I can still hear him saying that).
Music Monday: A Little “Just Keep Livin” reggae by Mishka and Brenda’s hip replacement surgery and physical therapy update
RichC | January 30, 2023
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Recipe reminiscing, the lost art of handwriting and longer days
RichC | January 5, 2023
A little bit of recipe reminiscing for Throwback Thursday #TBT this week. Over New Year’s Day, I enjoyed a “Bean Soup” recipe conversation with my daughter Katelyn. We discussed using the ham bone and pieces of ham from our Christmas dinner. I opted for a delicious Ham and Potato soup and froze a couple smaller […]
What a difference 90-days can make when #homebuilding
RichC | January 4, 2023
It has been about a month-and-a-half of steady construction on Katelyn and Drew’s #homebuilding project (the hashtag is how I’ve tagged their home construction on MDB). Since the Oostras were together on January 1st, they enjoyed a drive out to their Whitehouse, Ohio property as a family to check on the progress. It was shocking […]
Desultory - des-uhl-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee
- lacking in consistency, constancy, or visible order, disconnected; fitful: desultory conversation.
- digressing from or unconnected with the main subject; random: a desultory remark.