Sunday, December 13, 2015

Same Old Same Old...

Hard to finish a project that requires bought materials... when you open your wallet an' the onliest thing that falls out is dust...

Only two things you can do 'bout then...

One is shave expenses... stay close to home and burn less fuel. The other is... eat less.

... at 'bout 30 cents a cup, you can Crocodile Dundee it! Yup. "You can live on it... but it tastes like shit!"

The other is just keep huntin' up and haulin' rock from the desert round about. 'course, once you find it you still have to set it.

Turns out, though there's plenty of stone around, most of it is more rounded and lumpy. The flat sort of a suitable thickness for what I'm trying to do with it makes it a lil bit more of a search.

So it starts goin' a lil' bit slow as you clean out that what's closer to home.


I started mortaring in the stones I've placed.

I'm doin' the lazy man's mortar method. Just dust in dry mortar mix 'tween the stones and then mist it all a few times and let it set up.

I'm not trying to build the Taj Mahal... just set a place that cuts the dust some.


It's a lil bit of a curiosity. Those stones aren't really as far apart as they might seem in places.

The stones ain't got square edges. As I fill the gaps with mortar it widens out a lil' bit where the stones curve away.

All's good. Works for me.

Worked on another project I picked up a bit ago as well.

The headlights on the truck have been slowly fading. Part of the issue I think, is the bulbs themselves. The other was the lenses. I still have to replace the bulbs but I tried something I saw a test video on and damn if it didn't work out pretty sharp.

Pretty easy to see how fuzzy and hazy the lenses have gotten in the last 240,000 miles... These pics are after I washed 'em.

But do you think Like I do?




When you hear a salesman make his big claims your first thought is..."What a scam"?

When you hear him say "Our whizbang kit will restore your "Insert product name here" To Just like new condition!"

The thought in your mind is; "Yeahhhh... riiiiight."

Welllllll...


I used the 3M Headlight Restoration kit... the manual variety.

What can I say? From Hazy and cloudy lenses to crystal clear, and a whole lot cheaper at like $15 than replacing the clouded lenses!

I spent most of an hour... maybe... if you include all the dawdlin' and muckin' around. Three step process you can do pretty darn quick.

'course... now I have to clean off the drippin's from wet sanding...

The latest views from here on the high desert...



*The Dragoons - North End*

*That lil' bump on the left is called Mexican Hat*


* A neighbor... several hundred yards off to the west*

*Dos Cabezas Mtns*
Just goin' day by day... slow and cold sometimes. This high desert has been gettin' pretty cool lately at night. Supposed to be down to 19 or maybe 17 tonight and the next couple...ugh... my puny batteries aren't up to that task... and my gennie don't like firin' up when the cold dawns are that cool...

... might could be I'll be warmin' under a blanket with a cup of propane made coffee in the very near future... waiting for daylight.

- Brian

4 comments:

Judy said...

Baking soda and dish-soap will work also on those lens.

You have my sympathy on the ramen noodles. I was forced to buy a new car after my Beast-of-Burden died. We are going to be eating a lot old pintos from the food storage stash. Fortunately I have some equally old spices to change of the flavor up.

Unknown said...

You're a man after my own inner pioneer spirit. Nice blog. Keep warm this winter. I just had 8 or so inches of that white stuff up at my little place near Cuba, NM.

The Furry Gnome said...

That patio's coming along nicely! Some great sunset shots too.

Shutterbugshea said...

I like what you are doing on your patio..looks great! Think I will make one too!!...there are a lotta Rocks around the Sierrita Mountains too :)!