RichC | November 24, 2024
With all the expenses associated with owning a Florida condo these days (HOA monthly dues, large engineering related assessments, increases in insurance and real estate taxes, not to mention normal utilities and repairs) … I’m wondering if being an owner is worth it? Nevertheless, Brenda and I do enjoy the longer escapes these days as […]
RichC | November 17, 2024
On our recent trip to Florida, we saw stronger than usual winds on the beach most of the trip. Unfortunately the excellent BeachBub umbrella broke, although I’m unsure it was due to the stronger wind (but likely). I’ve written an email to the company just to see if there is a new “frame” part even […]
RichC | November 16, 2024
Officially this is a “replaced the garbage disposal project” from a week ago, but since I’m still mentally in “vacation-mode,” I’ll archive this post for condo improvements records and include a panaramic photo above from my new phone (I’m relaxed just looking at it). The old InSinkErator Badger brand disposal was replaced in 2012 (Brenda’s sister […]
RichC | October 1, 2024
Since it has been raining and because there was 1/2 cup of workbench top Zip Guard sealer left … and the Bame Utility Trailer was still in the garage … I decided to remove the cover in prep for raking leave and added the leftover sealer to the rail areas. After removing the cover, I […]
RichC | September 28, 2024
It has been a few years since the last raccoon has found a way to get into the house again, but it looks like one has made an entrance again. I’ve tacked up heavy galvanized screens, screwed aluminum panels and trapped and trapped and trapped them over the years, but the raccoons that live in […]
RichC | September 14, 2024
It really hasn’t been that long ago that I’ve recoated the garage workbench with Zip Guard. Since 2020 (4 years), there has been enough scraping and dripping of liquid on the work surface to make me think, “a little more protection won’t hurt.” Besides, the last of my Zip Guard in the jar was looking […]
RichC | September 3, 2024
Operation Crossroads Baker in 1946 Besides mowing the front lawn last Friday night (practically in the dark) and much of Saturday in the backyard, I did find time to replace the old cracked tires and rewire the “old” long ago broken lights on the Bame Utility trailer. On a book reading side note, I’m on […]
RichC | July 5, 2024
After repeated malfunctions with a Zoeller sewage pump in the pool house, I’ve started the process of evaluating what might be wrong. I did have a couple plumbers come out under the Angi “free estimate” home repair. They were both expensive and wanted to replace the current “still running” 230VAC pump with a new one […]
RichC | July 4, 2024
Five or so years ago while working in the garage, I damaged the oak banding edge on my workbench. It continued to bug me until I tried some car body filler as a repair. It has been fantastic ever since and continues to remind me that there’s a simple, economical fix for nearly everything. To […]
RichC | June 19, 2024
Amazon’s Prime shipping is still impressive and definitely beats spending time driving to the hardware or big box store to pick up a single item. Last week I had a exact Fluidmaster valve fail at the top of the stalk and decided to just order another (hoping it was just that one valve???) I probably could […]
RichC | June 15, 2024
While clearing a few photos off my iPhone 7 Plus due to limited storage space this week, I decided it might be nice to archive a few photos … so “leftovers” from the week sounded like a good idea for this post. First, Brenda wanted a few new hooks for mops and things in the […]
RichC | May 15, 2024
This archiving of leftover weekend photos is becoming a trend on My Desultory Blog and since it is a space for me to mark events and save photos, I suppose it will continue? Last weekend while celebrating Mother’s Day (along with my birthday) … I started pool opening process. I’m not sure how many more […]
RichC | May 11, 2024
On Friday May 10, 2024, I started noticing the beautiful northern lights (aurora borealis) photos showing up on my X.com social media feed. They were so impressive that I told Brenda that we would need to go outside in the evening. While glancing at my skywatching info, I also notice that the International Space Station […]
RichC | May 5, 2024
With the lawn growing like crazy, this is definitely not the time for a mower to need service. The local Kubota dealer is backed up 2 weeks for service and I’m struggling to diagnose the exact problem. So far I’ve only taken things apart, broken a “fuel return pipe” and ordered parts. Nothing like breaking […]
RichC | April 14, 2024
Photo from working in yard in Spring 2017 Our old John Deere 330 16HP diesel tractor, that we use for all kinds of yard chores, required another battery this spring. It seemed like just yesterday that I replaced it, but then I realized it was replaced back in 2012! Amazing longevity for a Walmart Ever […]
RichC | April 11, 2024
Brenda has been bugging me to remove a couple of pine trees (one 30 yo Blue Spruce that was nearly dead) from in front of the house (photo – house without the drooping pine). They were on the “to-do” list last year, but I’ve procrastinated until this year … and in my mind, I was […]
RichC | January 6, 2024
Last week we took our 2010 Acura RDX to our local repair garage, hoping for a minor rather than major issue. So far, so good. The initial thought that it might be a solenoid controling the turbo wastegate turned out to be “not” the issue … and digging deeper required several more hours of labor. […]
RichC | January 4, 2024
The LOW QUALITY, inexpensive replacement parts being sold these days is starting to irritate me; it is becoming a pet peeve. I have not notice this as much when purchasing OEM replacement part from the tractor dealerships or even for cars when it comes to big branded automotive part stores. Long gone are the days […]
RichC | January 2, 2024
With the slower than usual week between Christmas and New Year’s Day, I opted to work on a few home repair projects … really notice the toilet problems when the family was here over Christmas. I ordered a valve repair kit for the media/game room toilet in the basement and a new flapper set-up for […]
RichC | December 30, 2023
All fathers who semi-attempt to pass down a few “handyman” skills are proud of their sons (and daughters – mine is amazing!) when they tackle projects by themselves. Taylor continues to amaze me at his fortitude when taking on homeownership projects, although he’s never been hesitant to jump into things with both feet. 😊 It […]
RichC | December 28, 2023
After taking Brenda’s 2010 Acura RDX to a local service garage in September, it ran fine for a few months. Beginning in December though, it started to stumble and eventually triggered lights on the dash that included emissions and an AWD code. So we have taken it back this week to see if there is […]
RichC | November 9, 2023
Not all that long ago, I blogged on the need to start looking for a replacement pocket knife for my all-time-favorite EDC Swiss pocket knife. I could never quite cough up the money since the “blades” on my Mini Champ were still good and it spends most of its time in my pocket anyway. BUT […]
RichC | September 24, 2023
Our 2010 Acura RDX with 155,000 miles was sputtering and burning excessive fuel for the last couple of weeks (according to the car’s driver — Brenda) and by the time she asked me to take a look at it, a plethora of lights were on the instrument panel. A quick start-up and I knew something […]
RichC | September 2, 2023
Really, there’s isn’t anything to see … just a little sewing. Last weekend I got out the Sailrite Ultrafeed in order to salvage a pair of shorts that had frayed … but I failed, so they are now in the trash (I miss my mom). But since I hauled home the BeachBub.com beach umbrella bag […]
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 […]
RichC | July 25, 2023
Last weekend I toyed with the idea of converting one of my NiCad Paslode batteries over to Lithium-Ion. I picked up the charging module circuit board with DC voltage boosting and “thought” this might be a simple solution. Oh not so quick … 4+ hours later … it was not so easy to stuff two […]
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 […]
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 […]
RichC | May 30, 2023
The next time the LED chip malfunctions or “burns out,” I may try this hack … although instead of taping on a piece of foil … I think I’ll use solder.
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 […]