on the off chance

This would go great with a full moon stroll on a warm summer night wondering the foothills.

2011-02-20T02:01:00.000-08:00

Californian 245

2011-01-11T19:02:00.000-08:00

Two trips. First involved great american music hall shows and rain. Second trip was definitely a smooth tiresome adventure. Lost more money gambling in california than in nevada. Got two numbers on the mega millions and won $3. First number 04 and power ball 20. First and last.

5 hours across Nevada wasn't too bad. Half way across the sun went down and the temperatures dipped into the 20's and later teens. A 10 plus mile fog bank hiding the road a car length or two in front. Still and 50 mph I was being passed by semi trucks. Wendover proved to be a safe spot for the night. Happened into a few people I know and lost $5 after 5 hours of blackjack. Went up a bit and should have gone home with a bill.

In no particular order my top 10.

1.Cruise control kicked it.
2.SFO is the coolest airport in its own sort of way. $50 plane tickets.
3.Flying in from the northwest in view of Golden Gate Bridge and all of San Francisco. Then down the peninsula with a quick U-turn directly over Stanford University.
4.Fish Tacos/ and later when they hit me while at the Pic n' Pull in Sparks.
5.Snow 8 feet high on the side of eye 80.
6.Getting a small suite at a Super 8 for $55.
7.Pic-n-pull front tires $32 including a michelin. Pic-n-pull in Starks, NV almost convinced me to stay another day. Got a turn lens RF, rear view mirror, and voltage regulator off a brand new alternator. In case the alternator brushes where worn down I'd have a quick fix in the middle of Nevada's frozen terrain. Gave it to me for $5 (worth $26).
8.The sunshine somewhere on the bench between Auburn area through to Reno.
9.Frozen frosted trees in Wendover.
10.Making it home safely.

Neil Young - Good To See You - Live Acoustic

2010-12-08T22:53:00.000-08:00

Thinking at the moment. Got a lot of things to think about. Went through my discs the other night and played memory while finding the right case for the right disc. Thinking about the coming week of traveling and fond farewells along with gypsy ways in the city near the bay.

I've got some ideas of how to survive the moment but the uncertainty is strangely familiar to my last visit gone so terribly wrong. This time my survival will be based on my skills as a mechanic. Hopefully I count my clothing to last the trip. I've got a day to get a car running good enough to make it to a show in the City. If it all works out I should be spending my time hopping from the Oakland pic n' pull to the GAMH in the Tenderloin. If I can land in the City in time for fridays show then the BART will get me into Oakland for parts if needs be.

The time it takes to plan a trip such as this parachute ride is a bit daunting. When I don't have plans to spend money the options get interesting. I've always said I'd like to travel in a Volvo 245 truck stop style. I'll be attempting it and seeing how it fares. I've got a couple hotels but I think a gap of car camping in the City rather than the desert will be an adventure. Definitely has its survival plans. I mean I'm no Bear Grylls but one must do what they need to do in the wild.

If the method of staying safe works out then I may have a new approach to traveling to the City. "the city is expensive today"

Its been 6 years since my last visit. I'm hoping to shoot some shots like the way I did in the old times. Not really all that keen on seeing the sights. I've got to prepare for a journey across the great desert to deseret. My real confidence booster comes from my experience the last time I made it to California.

Driving a solid piece of technology and design across that expanse will be far from that old Van that I rode in to Folsom late summer of 2005. Hot and not really bolted down to the frame. The Sierras never felt so much like an airplane as the Van careened down through the road construction. Maybe like a bobsled coming out of a corner wobbly. White knuckles and prayers as traffic stayed back to allow for both lanes to be travelled in by 3 musicians and a photographer.

The driver awoke not too far outside Reno after being a sleep for the past 9 hours across Nevada. Hung over and ready to fly the plane. The curves into Reno where pretty crazy. But nothing like the decent to Auburn. I told him upon safe arrival, " I didn't realize you had a pilots license?" with his response, "I'm actually in the process of getting my pilots license." I told him how the ride felt more like an airplane because the suspension was so bad that it was always swaying and moving in all directions.

That night after the show I drove the van being the only sober one. I didn't make it a few blocks before I had to pull over. The steering was not responding and the play was 45 degrees out both directions. Nothing felt right. I understood then why it would sway and fish tale when being passed by semi trucks and busses.

Thinking back on that puts my future at ease some. I mean it should be a bit better than when I drove out there and back without zero mechanical abilities. I'll be flying in with a tool box and essential spare parts.

Oh ya, the Neil Young vid was inspired by finding my Silver and Gold album. I played it non stop for some time back in late 2000 and early 2001. Also found re~ac~tor. (no mash potatoes)

Avi Buffalo - What's In It For?

2010-11-13T00:24:00.001-08:00

!990 245 intro ->83 troubles

2010-10-13T09:30:00.000-07:00

My purchase of a 1990 White Volvo 245 wagon in late July was made in the spur of the moment with the pressure of knowing the car would be crushed in a matter of hours. If I didn't act then another 240 would forever be gone. No salvage yard first just straight to destruction.

I had strangely met a Texan at the local Salvage Yard while he worked on removing a strut tower from a small bodied pick-up truck. I took a different route coming back from trying to find any Volvos to pick parts from. Kind of wandered and ran into this conversation. He asked what kind of car I liked and he told me right there that he knew of a White Volvo Wagon 4 blocks up the street at a towing companies lot. I headed straight for it.

First inspections of the straight rust free body gave me an overwhelming feeling of luck. Looked at the engine compartment which looked like a black tar pit. Interior alright other than the front two seats loosing its fake leather and showing foam. Yellow paint on the windows showed the price of $700 along with a phone number.

The man on the phone instructed me to knock on the door of a small red bricked house next to the fenced lot. I was met by a young man in his 20's. Laid off from construction as a framer he was now just doing odds and ends for a friends family business. I went and looked it over with his access to the key. He fired it right up to a high pitched scream from 2 of the 4 accessory belts. The engine kind of smoked from burning the caked on dust and oil around the entire engine body. Exhaust was rusty but maintaining sound and a rattle free experience.

I told the guy to tell his boss I'll pay $450 for the car as is. The exhaust had an original CAT which would be worth at least $50 at the recycler's. One tire was flat and another one worn out. Brake light would come on and the pedal was easily going to the floor.

I received a phone number to call in the next couple hours if I wanted to save the car from the crusher. It was a friday morning when I first saw the car and by 3 pm that same day I was having to make a decision. We agreed that on Monday I'd have cash for him and if I didn't show up Monday morning the car would be crushed. Come to find out he also had a drywall business.

I made it out to the red bricked house Monday morning to secure the car. Called the insurance agent and had it added and began the slow back road trip home. Stopped at the most immediate run down gas station and put air in one of the tires. Drove the first mile on a nearly flat tire. The brakes where not working too well even after I swapped out the brake Master Cylinder before leaving the yard. I used the hand pulled emergency brake which was under adjusted so even pulling all the way up wouldn't slow the car entirely right away. A little pumping of the pedal and keeping speeds down as I cut from West Orem to North East Provo.

Since that time I've had it sitting and waiting for me to do something with it. My 1983 Wagon has had a few bad things happen over the past couple weeks. My clutch is going thats a sure thing. Rebuilt the Over Drive (18 hrs) on the manual M46 transmission. Replaced a bunch of rubber seals and o-rings. The bottom gasket on the screen cover won't stop leaking since the rebuild. Should of been the one thing that would hold. Luckily its not the most difficult gasket to replace. Holding off any more transmission work until the I drop it for a new clutch. Its just that I'm leaking expensive racing AT Fluid.

From inside with clutch pedal removed.

I got a clutch kit with the wrong throw out bearing from an ebay bid. Save about $60 to $100 on the kit. Ordered a throw out bearing for under $30. Getting everything ready for the big day that hopefully would come in the next couple weeks.

Then this past week my firewall split and bent from my clutch cable's pressure. This slow change of bending as I continually had to adjust the clutch was unnoticed until my 4 month old Gemo clutch cable snapped clean nearest to the pedal. The firewall had caused it to stress the wire from one side as the opening shifted due to the bending. Like pealing open a tin can.

I had hoped to replace the starter with a used one this week. Instead I've had to get a second temporary permit for the white wagon and drive it gently around town. Went to the Pick n Pull yesterday and got a new intake hose for it. Found an original Volvo hose without any oil in it. The aftermarket hoses crack in less than a year. Pulled a side mirror for the wagon and scored a decent wagon tail light. Pulled a distributor that ended up being bad.

Now I've got this list of about 20 things to do. I've done 3 of them so far. Today I've got to bleed the brakes. Even though I got the pressure to work pretty good there is still some sponge and delayed slowing on hard braking. Then the intake manifold comes off and the entire drivers side of the engine gets cleaned especially the Oil trap that looks caked in residue and plugging up the PVC system. Timing belt, front seals, PS and AIR bushings replaced along with all 4 accessory belts. Spark plugs, oil pressure switch, intake hose, front tire, tachometer, transmission flush, exhaust, emergency brake adjustment, tailgate wiring harnesses, rear hatch exterior door opening mechanism replacement and noisy vacuum leak in the console.

These are just the very first prelude items to any suspension or steering components needed. That list alone is over $500. But the white wagon is idling near perfect with plenty of power. The transmission is shifting hard with a few things to do before resorting to a swap or partial rebuild that is suppose to take a couple days worth of work.

the Mother Hips along with two Jackie Greene's

2010-03-02T00:56:00.000-08:00

The 245's gremlins have ceased for now.

2009-09-03T21:52:00.000-07:00

I bought a Volvo wagon, a 1983 light blue wagon with a big steering wheel. This was back in the summer of 2006. Found it off craigslist for $700 but it had (has) no rust. I got enough new parts with it and other volvo related items to estimate I paid roughly $200 for it when taking all the extras into account. It ran decent at the time of purchase other than a major exhaust leak the size of a dollar bill between the rear axle and muffler. Well I quickly found out why there was also new battery in the car too. The engine's wiring harness had its insulation falling to pieces and shorting out. The first thing the harness does in most cases is kill the battery due to shorting out on the way to the alternator. One can bypass the wire with a single new one but I decided to get an upgraded harness to rewire the engine.

I've got a long list of problems that have been sorted out over 3 years. A list that would have cost a villager at his local indie shop something up towards the $350O+ labor mark. But I've never taken it to anyone other than the exhaust dude with parts in hands. Its been an interesting experience taking each step slowly while learning from my mistakes or misdiagnosis. Its felt like I've accomplished 50 hours of college credit though the reading and hands on experience of experiments (diagnostics).

The parts have come to me well below the usual price found on auto parts web sites. Some I got through ebay and others from donor cars. Even then I had two 244's land in my way by a local mechanic who had a place to store them while he slowly parted them out to solely me. I usually got a 50% off deal in comparison to the local european yard staunch gaugers. In a months time those two cars are headed off to the scrap or junkyard.

That is unless I can get a place to put them. I've kind of got a place for one of them but only if I decide to keep it and swap my motor over to it from my 86 sedan, which suffered a sidelining injury from a recent high Unita's road. While returning from a yearly camping expedition I had one tire sort of go off the road and my crossmember stopped the car on a 3 inch rock planted firmly in the road. I have driven a volvo 244 up there every year for 9 years. This was the first real problem other than a little exhaust piping abuse. Even though the 86 244 came from San Diego near the early part of this decade, its floor boards are almost missing on the belly with mold infused with the rear passenger carpet. Smelled this past winter. I might just patch the car up and go for driving another couple years. But this could also be a good time to do a major transplant of nearly everything.

But it drove the 2 hours home even with the steering off kilter. I took the main line home down Parley's Canyon through Salt Lake Valley from the Canyon's Mother Hips rocking outdoor show, which I conveniently stopped in at while returning home from a nearby mountain range. To ready myself for the show I had to bath in a freezing cold creek coming out of a high altitude lake with a small snow patch still visible above. Changed cloths twice that day after getting dirty cleaning up my tent and new air matress (sale for $24.99 and worked great). The second change of cloths happened on a frontage road outside Park City along with another stop after passing through PC to brush my teeth with bottled water.

Anyways, I got the 86 sedan home and drove it hesitantly the next day around town. I jacked it up and found the front crossmember is in need of replacement. Its bent just shy of damaging my 2 year old rebuilt steering rack ($250). But put the rack off so its pulling at the steering wheel and causing it rub against the plastic column. The damage sustained was just enough to be a bad scenario but like someone recently said, "Life sometimes gets as bad as it can get but with things still working out. Like its the best possible outcome while things are going bad".

Oh well I had to drop the engine front crossmember anyway to replace the damaged oil pan it sustained going over a middle divide in downtown Salt Lake on 100 South near W. Temple. So my attention immediately went to the wagon in hopes of finally curing its poor running condition now on its third year strong. I went back through the small clips on the engine harness for the Air Mass Meter. I had bought some dental type picks to attempt the same thing a month ago and it seemed to temporarily work. But the cold start was unable to idle making for what seemed like major problems still to be discovered.

When I unplugged the AMM the car should idle normally. If I plug it in and I have problems then I know its the AMM. I couldn't tell what was going on because the bad idle was present at all times. It was still having problems at idle with the AMM unplugged. Meaning it was something else. Even with the air mass meter unhooked the car wouldn't idle until warmed up. Which meant it wasn't the Air Mass Meter fully being the problem but at least I could tell it was a good part of the problem when driving with a loss of power. (WARNING: do not unplug the AMM or plug it in with the key in the ignition. Have it off and maybe even disconnect the - battery cable (blue going to a bolt on the body).

I took two pick ends this time and applied more pressure to the half dozen hard to reach metal clips inside the larger connecting plastic plug. I unhooked the battery for 10 minutes too and reset the computer while unplugging the AMM. I learned recently the true capabilities of the main ECU having a strange personality by causing a bad idle when messing with the AMM. By switching out the 83 wagon's Air Mass Meter with a rebuild off Ebay that I had been saving, while the battery was unhooked resetting itself, I fixed the cold start bad idling probem that would cause the car to die the first few minutes. My niece's 244 did the same thing a couple weeks before when I was just about to sell it. They where going to pick it up that day and then it just started idling strange after switching out an AMM from a junk yard to fix a high idle on a her 1990 244. Her bad idle problem was also fixed by unhooking the "ground" to the battery (- blue). The AMM I had in the 83 wagon was a rebuilt AMM from a local parts car that seemed to work fine at first. I really need a dwell meter to correctly adjust the meters. The combination of things worked and the car has the power like my 86 sedan.

I still have some items of need on the wagon but the engine is now running well. After replacing the engine harness, distributor, intake gasket, cleaned throttle body, replaced AMM and FPR and the Idle Control Valve, along with the rims with tires and back to the original hubcaps from my long gone 83 tan sedan of a few years back. Disconnected the leaking pre-oiler and racing filter along with removing the oil cooler and restoring it back to the screw on run of the mill oil filter screwed right to the engine.

Got the wiring to the tailgate replaced and the wiper motor running. I found a page of notes from the past owner trying to figure out the stock switch position for the windshield wipers. I've taken it from the front wipers being a 2 speed to a stock 3 speed with the replacement of the wiper motor. The rear wiper motor still needs one bolt installed. Maybe the reason the wiring to the fuse box from it was unhooked. Although the rear wiper relay had to be replaced on account it was still behind a foot holder to the side of the clutch pedal. Behind the removable piece of metal secure with 3 small screws are the stock position for the two wiper relays. I rerouted them under the dash above the steering column area as to not get wet and be fried in rust.

Anyways its been a much longer adventure with this car than I thought possible. It just felt right to buy it and the temporary owner before me was getting married. He had no hope of restoring it. Its made me want to restore it fully one day. Paint and everything. But I'm sure I've got another 5 to 10 years before that would happen. Now onto the overdrive not engaging and that u-joint or more bushings along with the immediate need to install those boge struts and ball joints up front.

I'm feeling confident that the rear springs off the 89 donor I got for $50 this week seem strong and in great shape. I think they are aftermarket heavy duties, the same I was just about to order new for $85 a pair. Unless I do a full transplant to the 89 from the now in need of structural and floor board surgery, 1986 maroon sedan. Changing out engines, tires, seats, headlights, taillights, brakes, fuel pumps, gas tank, exhaust, trim, hood hinge, instrument cluster, relays, seat belt, and other things that I've taken off it in the past.

But it has no apparent rust although I don't remember for certain if it has been damaged by a forklift like the 84 I bought along side with it for parts. I don't think it did since I had taken the CAT off it so they didn't have reason to lift it lazily. Anyways....

the mother hips @ desert rocks music festival 5/09

2009-09-03T20:53:00.000-07:00

Sonic Youth

2009-08-02T11:16:00.000-07:00

It was around the time when my family finally got MTV for the first time or maybe a couple years after (90-91). I was staying up late to watch 120 minutes since most of everything else on MTV at that time sucked like it does now. This video hit a chord with me and my ideals at the time. It resembled the shows I'd been to at that point in my life. Had that cool local feel with a good song. I recorded a number of different songs by bands but this video was the best one by far. I'd replay the VHS over and over to get that vibe being instilled like the shows by my favorite local at the time, the Gladbirds.

This week I finally got to see Sonic Youth play live. I didn't know what to expect. I heard a new album of theirs about 5 years ago but didn't really get into it at the time. But I went to the free show in downtown SLC out of feeling nostalgic. The show went beyond my open expectations. They played with a cooler vibe and well, I just can't go on without trying to describe a better than expected show. Really a great moment. They played two encores and that really didn't seem like enough. Can't believe I've put off prior opportunities to see them play live.

The merch guy is probably the funniest thing about the video. The photos above are a couple from the 200 I shot. Most of them though aren't anything great. I didn't have the best spot.

castle trip #6 July 2nd 09/ July 8th photos

2009-07-05T23:46:00.000-07:00

woodpecker took the opportunity after the damage.

I made it up to the castle finally after a couple months. I was stunned to see how beautiful the trees had filled in with leafs since the last visit. The south stairs and floor where covered with thick green foliage that made a nice room type place. Sad destruction to report since the last visit to one particular little tree that borders the south side of the rock floor. The tree had three limbs of equal size about 3 inches in diameter. I had a metal wire holding them together in an attempt to guide it upwards and then out. But now two of those branches have been twisted off in some ass's attempt to make a fire, I guess. A couple other branches littered the area around the castle that I believe came off the large tree. The main tree had a 5 inch spot hacked at its base with maybe a hatchet. Damn kids is what I'm thinking. This is going to lead to more frequent visits at sunset in hopes of catching the guilty party. I'm also thinking of getting a metal sign to put high on the telephone pole on the way to the castle with rules of conduct.

Rules
#1 No Glass
#2 Bring your own damn wood
#3 pack out what you pack in
#4 don't move the rocks

Anyways I worked a couple hours including picking up all the large glass pieces I could find in the castle. I also deconstructed part of the stone floor and made some real progress in it construction near where the large boulder use to stand. I arranged some rocks near the fire pit on the top of the front wall and rolled a large rock into the castle in preparations for its use somewhere. I did some more surveying on the idea of incorporating the trees to the south east with more stone floor and stairs. Time to get my camera up there after the next effort at its new developments.

castle trip today #'s 4 & 5

2009-05-07T23:09:00.000-07:00

I need to take my camera to the castle but either way I still go without it when the opportunity presents. Today I got some time to head up to do some more work. I went last thursday too and did a fair amount of work on the front wall. Had some visitors again, this time with a couple guitars and purple fragrance. About time for some sage incense making.

Today I got a lot done with the front wall now built nearly straight up from the large base rocks that use to sit out from the castle wall with nothing on top. The front wall will have a circular feel to it extending out a couple feet from where the fire pit is. Hoping to make room for a couple more people to sit comfortably around the fire. I also took a nice chunk of time to dig out the fire pit and use the ash for fill between the rocks on the rock floor. I had so much fill that I just started to throw in into the new front wall that has a couple more feet to go. I got the outer part of the front wall built strong and started to disassemble the wall directly behind the fire pit to move it back a couple feet.

I was able to find quite a few rocks in front of the castle to help build the wall up. I rolled a few more big ones down to the back wall too. The main entrance had some rearrangements and a couple new big rocks added. I spaced the rocks around the tree near the main entrance to allow it space to grow. I also added charcoal and ash to its base along with most of the other trees.

I contemplated extending the castle rear wall out about 4 feet allowing the two big boulders to have the ability to free stand with a few large rocks as stairs. I'd like to incorporate a line of trees on the southeast side of the castle but would need to prune and make a wall that included them in. That would pretty much double the size of the inside area of the castle. Make it more of a garden around the south and east sides while preserving the front wall.

The front wall is taking shape. The fire pit will be surrounded by what appears to be a circle within the larger circle that the castle makes. The two circles connect behind the fire on the front wall. Thinking of maybe having access to the fire from all sides. That would be accomplished by having large flat stones arranged as large steps on the inside of the front wall leading down to the pit. The steps would make the seating into a circle rather than a half circle. I realized that the fire is prone to break the rocks that surround it. Kind of like the idiots who built a fire in the past week right in front of the large sitting rocks causing one to break a layer off.

After seeing the damage to the valuable sitting rocks I found a perfect staff for digging out the fire pit. A paper plate and cup where the first items used to remove the wet ash but they gave way to a powerade plastic bottle. I had to use my finger nail clippers to puncture a hole for my car key to get in and be used in a sawing motion until I got the top off. I filled that thing for an hour or more. The rock floor looks more flat and even now with the filled in cracks. Once the wall behind the old pit is removed I'll have more ash to clean out. I think the pit will need to be dug down a foot below the ground level.

It seemed like after working for 4 hours today that I hadn't done anything. It kind of feels the same even though its different. I got a nice sunburn on my arms and face. Caught a tic on my arm too today which kind of worries me since my mom once had a bite from a deer tic put her in the hospital with a staff infection.

castle trip today #3

2009-04-30T00:05:00.000-07:00

I got done working in Provo on some drywall patches around 7:30pm. Enough time these days to head up the mountain a bit and view the sunset. I surveyed the work I did on my last visit making use of the softening light to aid viewing the castle from all directions. I spent 45 minutes moving some rock around. I made the sitting area to the north of the fire pit much more suitable for sitting. I found and used on that part one of the two good sized light weight rocks Wade T. and I hauled from Rock Canyon's riverbed some 16 years ago. I remember the German hitch hiker we picked up in Price on the way home from Moab with Anne C., Christian from Hamburg, was with us that day.

Those two rocks have fragments through out the walls since they broke up easily. I set a large tan rock that I rolled last week from around the back of the castle. It has a nice flat seat to it and was set perfectly next to the large whitish rock on the south side of the fire pit. I moved the rocks I'd placed between the front wall and rock floor, they had been placed there to get an idea of what an expansion of the rock floor would look like leading over to the front wall. This time I made the attempt to see what a dirt trail would look like sloping as it already does down between the large tree and split rock.

I also moved some smaller rocks around a small tree on the edge of the rock floor to allow for it to successfully grow a wider trunk. The wire hanger is still holding its three main branches together in hopes of it growing up rather than outward. I've now realized the the walls need to made taller than they have been in the past at the same time being safe to walk on. The image in my brain of my first summer time visit to the castle is reoccurring with a longing for that tall bowl feel. I thought the two large boulders on the back wall where better off being the tallest part of the back wall. But maybe having a foot above them along the very back would add some interesting feel.

I've also been envisioning a gathering of 30 souls for a concert of sorts. I think the rock floor makes for a good stage and the rest of the castle could easily seat a gathering. Thats part of my reasoning for the walls to be taller, to try and hold in the sound. The front wall is being envisioned more as a cresent moon with nice large stairs/seating on the southern third. Having the front wall taller above the fire might make for a walking path along the middle of the west side of the wall a needed asset. That way the rocks would stay put above the fire and used as a railing of sorts. I always hated to see someone right above the fire when they didn't know better.

It would be nice to have a castle building day once a year. Employing a handful of people with the legendary but as of yet unconstructed boulder carrier would be nice. The area to the north west of the castle has plenty of large rocks that could be used to raise the height of the walls. The lower rock castle to the north of main castle is in ruins at the moment thanks to a boulder rolling though it in '05. I think its time to build it up a little in an attempt to leave the floor open but then decide which rocks could be sacrificed for the Rock Castle.

I noticed some new signs of falling rock while I was heading up there. It appears that there was another large boulder that made a crater on the shoreline trail near where the castle's trail starts. It wasn't there last week. I've figured out that if a rock fall is observed above the castle then one should run south towards the red rock slides, that is if the rock fall is grey rock. Looking over the land it appears that is the safest direction to run out of the range of rolling grey rock. If an earth quake is felt at the same time then one is pretty much screwed. I haven't figured out any safe place to hide in such an occasion.

While I was there the thought of how nicely hidden the castle is came to mind. Then before I was to leave two guys in their late 20's came strolling up. One wanted to talk too much and the other had a backpack with no words other than to shut his dog up. For some reason the dog was freaking out a bit over me being there. I had to wonder by the way the one was talking whether or not they where cops in plain clothes. He kind of had that look to me. But the other was looking like he just wanted a beer out of his backpack. The one talker claimed to have never known about the place and said well maybe the other guy had known about it. Kind of sketching on me or something. Kind of bugged me and made me laugh at the same time. About that time the last of the after glow was going and it was getting dark. I bailed the other way and didn't see where they went. Always someone showing up.

I also took a stick to the fire pit and found a lot of smaller rocks in with the ash and charcoal. Can't wait to get that thing cleaned out and reshaped. I took the end of the stick dirtied by stirring the ask and traced over the etching in the boulder. It made it less pronounced but still showed clearly thanks to the modeling of the sunset's light.
Good times.

rock and roll

2009-04-26T23:31:00.000-07:00

I've made two trips to the Rockcastle in the past month. Its been over 5 years since I've had any desire to work on it, maybe in part since I've been occupied with manual labor instead of school. I was hoping some younger stranger would surprise me with something new. I've instead have found it to be torn apart and half rebuilt. Which is where I found it a few weeks ago on a warmish day that inspired me to move a few rocks. I had no preconceived idea that I would actually work on the place but a medium sized rock sitting out on the middle of the floor needed to be moved.

The back (east) wall was mostly gone inside the castle with large stones I'd set in place years ago still hanging on with nothing to help support from below. I enjoyed the way they could remain in place without the stones below but felt a little unhappy that people have to destroy more than they build up. That has been the story since the time I began taking on what once was to what it might become. I have labored before for 5 hours most of one day and by the next there would be havoc wrecked on the work done the day before. I suspected young high schoolers needing to play out their drinking rage. One time in 93 nearly half the wall on top where toppled down filling in the bowl that the castle resembled then. Full destruction prevailed in part thanks to a large wooden staff that I had been using to build with and left out in the open.

The original Rockcastle as I saw it, in what must of been around 1992, (first heard about in 1990 from my brother) was somewhat different than what it has become to be now. My favorite tree has been destroyed in part by man and nature. The south wall is now a rock floor patio accompanied with stairs and seating for those hot summer days under the largest and oldest scrub oak treee on the mountain. My main memory of the walls where that of loose rock piled high with larger flat rocks placed on top the front wall making for great places to sit and look out over the valley.

The Castle today has a front wall made by some local kids who I met just before leaving the other day, earth day. Its been constructed tall and thin for keeping the fire hidden as they described the reason to me. One said, "we didn't know anyone else really knew about the place". I told them a brief account of my brother and his friends and my friends a few years later. They had heard about us. I didn't inquire much and left pretty quickly as to allow the two guys and their girlfriends ample time to enjoy the sunset. Plus I stunk like I'd been moving rock for a few hours.

The first visit this year sparked something within me when I arrived to find the place in a dismal display. The first rock I moved was sitting on the dirt floor of the castle. It didn't appear to be too big to lift onto the back wall. I attempted to lift it without respect for its condensed matter and instantly felt a pull in my lower back. It hurt but I kept on for another hour and half rebuilding the wall. I made sure each time my back was straight and I was using my legs or used the other method of just rolling it up the wall. I find rolling the rocks an enjoyable activity. It amazes me mid movement of rocks that I can control it relatively easy as I control roll up and down walls. I rolled a new rock that I found behind the castle, a piece that must of broke off the 10 foot boulder that skipped through the castle in '05.

My back ached for a couple days until I got an ibuprofen 800 from a friend and stood next to a fire the following friday night. Saturday it felt like new and I was happy until around 7pm when I was checking over my camera gear before leaving for a show in Salt Lake. I bent over while sitting on my desk chair, holding my camera in my lap with knees together an all at once my lower back froze on me and sent pain through out my back and legs. I couldn't unbend my back while I made it to the floor next to my bed. After a couple minutes I somehow struggled to lay on the bed sideways. It took me 20 minutes before I felt safe to get up and even then it was tricky. I missed the show, the Hold Steady, but the last thing I was going have was that same thing happen with a couple hundred people watching an hours drive from home.

The memories of building on the castle are always stirred up by familiar rocks that I have moved a number of times. I'm sure I've moved each stone at the castle at least once if not a half dozen times. Some are like old friends that come alive as I find them under other rocks since the half strewed rebuilding. I can even recall certain moments with others who actually put some work into moving or laying the floor. Steve M. put the big red rock at the start of the floor and it took three of us less time to roll the largest elongated boulder in front of the fire pit for seating than it took for me to persuade them to help roll it. Paul G. and Ryan B. can be credited for that move one summer day.

I hope to add a little extra space around the fire pit by moving the west wall a couple feet out. The base already stretches out in a useless fashion on the bottom outer side. I feel like the wall could be reconstructed to allow safe climbing on all sides. Something I've noticed with people's activity at the castle is that they really want to be able to just move over all of it. So I'll attempt to make it safe from all directions of travel. That takes away from its height in some ways but keeps rocks from being knocked loose and falling on others.

I envisioning there to be stairs made of sitting rocks leading a top the split boulder near the tree. Thinking about opening up the inside of the castle south of the fire pit with these "stairs" that can serve also as a small bowl of its own. I've began to envision a circle of stairs and stone floor around the large tree. Still contemplating a possible archway making use of the split boulder but that is still just a thought.

The fire pit needs to be dug out with its pile of ashes rising up 3 feet above the somewhat buried charcoal covered floor between the sitting rocks and the pit. Which is great stuff for filling in the rock floor which has lost its flatness to erosion between rocks. I've started to work on the front wall in an effort to make it walkable again. The visitors who appeared the other day instantly made use of the part I'd rebuilt. It was good to see someone standing on the wall and looking out over the valley. The fire pit will be elongated to allow more patrons to enjoy. I think it will have the wall directly above it rise higher than the rest of the wall in a roller coaster fashion. Hopefully that will shield fire light from the city and give some wind protection to the fire. Give it some curve appeal too.

Who knows where it will end up. This could be my one last go at it or just one more phase of its constant change. Here are some shots of what it looked like on earth day before I did much to it. Who say's a recession is a bad thing, not when it gives way for working on the castle. I've also contemplated ways to obscure the etching of "the rockcastle" by dirtying it up over time by rubbing dirt and bark in the grooves. Hoping to aid its aging and hide a major regret of it ever existing. The direction I hope to make with aesthetics combines a mix of raw dry stacked rock influence by natural rock fall with the mingling of squared crafted usable compositions in form or stairs and seating.

the 240 saga continues...volume 1 article 2

2009-02-09T18:44:00.000-08:00

~Emissions and Safety~

This will serve more as a personal journal while eating up some server, sucking the energy right out of the earth. The cars have continued to serve up entertainment of great proportions. I put off the whole emissions safety thing for the first 3 weeks of January. First the rear passenger taillight had to be replaced since my angle-head pole (Paul Gardener's extendable concoction that went with the glazer he sold me) busted the inside part that allowed the bulb holder to grab hold of the taillight assembly.

That journey took me to two junkyards with one having a light but they wanted $75 and seeing it was looking 25 years old I passed and went with a $58 new after market on ebay. I attempted to get the tests done but the owner at Jim's Automotive told me a headlight was not adjustable and would need to be fixed. He mentioned kindly a 5 minute poxy that would hold the ball joint that busted to the back side of the light's reflector wall. While I attempted to keep the stuff from oozing away from the needed, I sort of gave up after a small battle and drove to the next place on my list that day. An hour later I arrived back at Jim's and found the stuff actually worked. But I hadn't tightened the 10mm nuts making the headlight seem loose still. He gave me a little bit of the Bill Murray sort of stumbled talk, with his longish balding wild hair complimented by the non removable grease stains on his scalp. But he again showed grace and gave me enough credit to quickly tighten it up and display adjustment.

The car passed on safety but the emission showed that there was some raw fuel not getting ignited. He suggested to start with cap, rotor, and plugs like I had no real understanding of the cars construction. The car was driving fine so it sort of took me by surprise. I went home and found a broken piece with burnt plastic inside the Cap, at top where the ignition wire feeds the spark. I had a useable Cap stored in a box with spare ignition wires still attached to it. I took out the spark plugs and gapped em after trying to wipe the signs of unburned gas. The air box thermostat got rigged to never need another thermostat since it was possible the AMM was damaged and partly responsible for causing the car into running rich with fuel.

While attending to the spark plugs my eye caught hold of the Flame Trap which had come apart after taking the high powered car wash at the valve cover a few days before. That led to the removal of the throttle body with subsequent cleaning of both it and the Flame Trap with the replacement of the small vacuum hose leading from the FT to the intake manifold. The valve cover looked to be holding tight after I cleaned and replaced its gasket just a few days before the tests. The dismantled Flame Trap isn't a good way to run a car. The flame trap's job is to allow the crankcase pressure to ease and for stray emissions inside an engine to make its way back through the intake and burned with the air/fuel mix.

~Interrupted by broken Clutch Cable~

Between the failing of the emissions and making it back home without getting a ticket, I had the clutch cable break as I accelerated from the stop light on Center Street and University heading East. I coasted into the first slanted parking spot and begin the race to replace the cable with one I had stored under the passenger seat. The stock scissor jack (unsafe on its own to work under the car with) was used to jack up the car enough to slide under. The sun was a half hour from sunset when I started and would cause me to struggle late in the job. Unhooking the cable from the pedal was really easy and I was feeling like things where just going great. Removal of the old was quick.

I tried to take into my mind what the correct assembly for the iron weight and rubber bushing where on the clutch fork. I got stumped the same way the last time forgetting that the cable needed to be adjusted to its longest length before it would reach the fork. After I figured that out I was just fooling with the two adjustable wrenches trying to adjust the tension. After an hour and fifteen minutes I finished the clutch worked although the adjustment would cause me problems on the way home the next day from the emissions test which I passed really well on. The old cable was bought franticly a couple years ago from Autozone. I knew when I put it on that it wasn't going to last. I bought the best known brand off the internet and had it ready.

~every 240 owners dreaded task, Rear Trail Arm Bushings~

At this time I could go into the trail arm bushing that gave me hell this last saturday. But I don't think it worth reliving. Getting to where I could put the "Home Brew TAB Tool" on was easy and again I was rolling. (BIG THANKS to Richard Talley for machining it for me) Then it was one thing after another until I finally got the bushing out. The pressing out took me a good 2 hours. The secret was using the metal tube from the shock absorber bolt to keep the metal holding the bushing to the rear axle from bending.

Then pressing in went pretty quick and the reassembly kicked my butt. Nothing wanted to line up with the two bolts that had to be inserted through the TAB and shock absorber. Having to align the sway bar holes with the rear trailing arm made for setting two jacks in vicarious positions enabling the slight adjustments of both the sway bar and rear axle. I ended up putting the wrong long bolt through the TAB and tightened twice the bolt to it before realizing it was meant for the shock. NO bolt is done up easy. They all took way too long. My shoulders paid the most price along with hands and wrists. My back looked and felt like a sunburn from the 7 hours of sliding under the rear of the car on cardboard. I should have found my knee pads before starting although they weren't needed like when the Timing Belt needs changing.

~daytripper~

I went walking through Sears tonight looking over their tools and exchanging a multi-screwdriver for a new one since the plastic handle split on me from too much twisting. I calculated thousands of dollars needed to get the tools I really want. From an air rachet to a paint gun to a new torque wrench to a vacuum gauge to a ratchet-swivalhead-breaker-bar to a nicer tool box to a gas pressure gauge to a new set of metric deep sockets over 21mm to tin snips to sand blaster (just looked like fun) and all the other things that one day might be in a garage of mine. Maybe. I realized how I can get through most jobs with the basics and most of that stuff isn't really needed other than that air rachet to keep my hands from getting sore and speeding stuff up. Anyways... when I win the lottery then maybe...

I also talked the DMV into replacing my wagon license plates for free. The plates before as seen in the snow pictures was 666. The blue beast was the wagon's nick name for a time. Now I'm hoping that the car will finally get moving and the gremlins cease. I've got a u-joint on the list along with figuring out that cold idle problem. I'm thinking electrical or a plugged FPR. Cool.

(below added April 27th, 2009)

Replaced FPR with new Bosch I got for $25 off ebay (!!!), did not solve problem. Replaced this past week the seal to the brake booster check valve since the old one had a split in it. Helped some. Today I replaced the bottom o-rings on the fuel injectors and found an increase in power but I still have a stall until it warms up. Two o-rings looked suspect. Need a bosch distributor from a 83-84 2.3 li Lh 2.0 donor. Original Chrysler distributor put back in but has a short in the 6" lead for the ignition harness plug. Getting closer to solving the running issues. U-joints and full suspension replacement on list of things to do this year if work picks up.

Winter storm drops a foot of fluffy stuff

2009-01-07T00:49:00.001-08:00

Plastic #3 = a tub of Red Vines

2008-12-17T00:34:00.000-08:00

Going back two years ago I was in Costco with a friend buying some bulk food when I saw a bucket of Red Vines. For some reason they appealed to me at that moment and I bought the tub of sugar. What I didn't expect was a plastic taste on the bottom third of the licorice. Even more upsetting was a news report a week later on a local tv station warning against plastic #3 seeping chemicals into food.

More recently plastics #5 and #7 have been in the news this past year over baby bottles. That caught most mothers by alarm and kind of propelled the belief or truth about plastics being unsafe. One thing I read that the chemicals in plastics can do is seep into the body causing some people to have diabetes as well many other crazy problems. Kind of ironic that I told my mother her half melted bottle of sugar free maple syrup from the microwave was now more problematic for her diabetes than the sugar would have been. On the bottom of her plastic bottle was the #5, the same given in the baby bottle stories.

I was at Costco again last week eating an fatty oil soaked pizza you can buy at their "cafe". But while in the store shopping for things like a box of Dentyne peppermint gum, Korean pears and hot apple cider powder mix, I noticed the Red Vines stacked 4 feet high. I went and looked at the tub and sure enough the bottom still had a #3 on it. This plastic is more often found in building materials but there are also food distributors who use it too. I've come to realize in the past two years that if your going to eat or drink from plastic you should limit it to the #1 and #2 plastics. They are stronger and seep less chemicals.

A friend of mine from England who I converse with regularly through email recently told that switching from chemical based "toiletries" to organic has solved long occurring problems with nasal and ear infections. These have been common problems for this person for years. Maybe just allowing the body to act like its built rather than being inhibited by the chemicals. (Read the fourth paragraph of the link below under "Dioxins" where it mentions "immune system suppression") Which makes me think the anti-smoking commercials that talk about the poisons in cigarets could just as easily target things we take for granted in our every day lives, like the asphalt we drive on every day.

Believe it or not even with all the news coverage two years ago about the #3 plastic I couldn't find anything on the net until I relied on a some what trusted source, Wikipedia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyvinyl_chloride

Actually you can pay to read about the #5 plastic leaking chemicals into our bodies.

The start of Winter

2008-12-16T00:43:00.000-08:00

Autumn has arrived in the Valley

2008-10-22T23:42:00.000-07:00

I didn't have the time during the optimal days to get into the mountains this year. But I found this one tree that took me by surprise. I was without my camera the day before when I first saw it and in one day the top red leafs lost a bit of life and vibrance. I think its a Silver Maple. I can only imagine the North East in fall.

For post camera work flow i've forgotten about Nikon's NX2 program (slower than riding the local bus system) and have been really happy using Adobe Lightroom 2. Its a real bummer it took me over a two months to find this out. I thought what would be the point if I bought the new photoshop (hasn't happened yet). But Adobe Lightroom 2 is the way to go until someone shows me otherwise. Please do if I'm still not using the best program for a digital workflow.

Band of Annuals

2008-09-29T10:21:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago I shot my first concert with a digital camera (I sold out) at Velour Live Music Gallery in Provo. It was the send off show for a local band heading out across the country for over a month. The Band Of Annuals are a great band from Salt Lake and have caught the attention of a few across the country. They are opening for the Minus 5 in Seattle. The Minus 5 includes REM's guitarist Peter Buck who has always fueled interesting guitar work. The BOA opened up for the Mother Hips earlier this year at the Urban Lounge. I invited a friend along for the show that night and found him respond with instant amazement at the sound coming from the stage. He looked puzzled at how good they sounded and had to move a few feet to see where the other voice of vocalist Jeremi Hanson was hiding behind her keyboards. Jay Henderson could be considered the main singer but when the two sing together its something else. Like Peanut butter and jelly, Simon and Garfunkle, (with no similarities to either) the mix of two voices, male and female, along with the subtle yet overwhelming sounds that wrap around the listener like the softest of blankets. It comforts and inspires. Anyways, its indescribable when the night is right and the sound system translates the bands greatest potential to the audience. Its no wonder they've found some far distant fans from their main stay, Kilby Court.

Check my link to flickr for more from this show.

A few new photos from the D700

2008-08-23T12:31:00.000-07:00

After a couple weeks with the new camera I've found a new interest in night time photography. I attempted to shoot the meteor shower but only caught one before the winds became chilling up Hobble Creek Canyon. It was nearly 2 am when I left before the most concentrated numbers would be seen. But the camera performed beyond what I thought would be possible and gone was the guessing I use to do in night time photographs. I've included two of the many. My first shooting star can be seen just above the mountain. The other one is from Springville looking towards Salem. I must be doing something wrong because every jpg I upload to the blog seems to be of a lesser quality. Just click the photo for a better look.

The real reason oil prices have been out of control.

2008-08-22T00:55:00.000-07:00

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/20/AR2008082003898.html

Its funny that the same change in law that allowed a loop hole for Dick Cheney's old employer Enron is also to blame for allowing the current oil speculators the right to buy commodities. Enron, Iraq, oil, and who really knows the next great depression.

Like the Dude said, you find who benefits the most and there you have it, she kidnapped herself man.

Got my first real digital camera this week.

2008-08-10T11:01:00.001-07:00

The photo was shot last night from a friends back porch. I cropped the photo to a third of the original size to show the lightning up close. It was around 11pm and dark out. I got a few more strikes but this is the one I like.

The Nikon D700 is the digital camera I've waited years for. Finally a camera at a reasonable price that actually rocks. Full size (35mm film size) sensor, not the smaller DX version that had been the norm until now for nikon. I shot a million dollar house for 4.5 hours this past thursday morning for Skrilla Builders. The camera worked beautifully and effortlessly to the extent I felt it was cheating the old need to know something film photography. Had I shot film it would have taken 10 rolls of 35mm and multiple filters to get white balance. Besides the great quality at high ISO's allowed me to leave the tripod after the first hour to just shoot hand held. That was very important due to a 9 am shooting deadline to get the details though out the house photographed before the homeowners moved 3 semi-trucks worth of stuff into the behemoth.

To have bought film, processed and scanned the stuff it would have cost me $200. Enough to buy memory cards that will last years. Plus I actually can look at the photos instantly without expensive, time consuming Poloroid instant self developing film. Instant feedback, skipping ISO settings, D-lighting which gives more details in the shadow and highlights, all just made for a really great experience. I've shot and stored away a hundred rolls of film the past few years without scanning or printing them. I got pretty good at just reading the negatives when I picked them up and took my time to archive em while they hung on the wall. Now I've got some time to catch up with my film archive. I will still shoot film for the sake of having a negative with certain subject matters. Film has been a great part of my life's experience's. Hopefully one day I can get my own color and B/w darkroom set up and have some fun with the negatives I've shot over the past decade.

Yesterday's problem

2008-07-25T10:53:00.000-07:00

My problem yesterday came while working on the blue Volvo wagon. My suspicion was made real when I found that the connection from a wire to the knock sensor was being pressed against by an idle bypass hose, loosening the male connector on sensor. I'm battling a hesitation problem like the gas cuts out quickly while driving above 20 mph. Its also not idling without the help of my gas pedal for the first minute. After the car warms up its good to go.

This wouldn't be the first thing wrong with the car. I've been able to drive the car only a few random weeks that make up a couple months filling in just a little of over two years that I've had it from purchase. In that time I got my first speeding ticket while driving the beast. How could I pass up a car off craigslist when it had so many extras coming with it for free. I figured out after taking off the initial price the net worth of all that was included, some new in the box, I paid about $250-300 for it. It has virtually no rust for a 25 year old car which translated into a worthwhile project. But since that time its had the engine rewired, gas filter replaced 2 times, all exhaust replaced, fuel sending unit and pre pump, torque rod bushings, carpet, plastic molding around windows, shorts in the wiring, new distributor (used), belts, rims, shoot I could keep going but I always forget something. A lot of which are from donor cars. A practical way to recycle.

Yesterdays problem wasn't too bad. I could just simply solder it onto the knock sensor for fear it had come loose. The problem started up again around the time the IAC was removed and cleaned. The hose hitting into the knock sensor was coming from the IAC on its way back to the intake manifold. I moved the connection around and broke it off the knock sensor. You have to have a knock sensor to help the car to calculate its timing and gas to air ratio. I successfully soldered the male connector to the knock sensor but decided it wasn't on their at the correct angle. I heated it up again turning the solder to liquid and causing the male connector to drop nearly out of site at the beginning of a tunnel gong under the oil separation box. After successfully pushing it under the separation box and out of view and out of reach, I knew what had to be done. The new intake manifold gasket was going on the car and in the process I would replace the thermostat sensor under the impossible to reach 4th cylinder intake and reclaim the lost connector by having clear access to the oil separation box.

I had started around 2:30 in the afternoon and before too long half the engine (nearly everything prior to the block) would be disconnected and approaching 6 pm. To take the intake off you have to disconnect the the fuel rail plus gas lines and injectors. Countless vacuum hoses, the one big hose, wire harness connections, multiple ground wires, the throttle cable, and 10 bolts to the manifold. Not an easy 10 bolts like I thought they would be before I started, two would cause me grief with one being lost and a replacement needed. No worries I found one. Once the intake manifold is ready to be removed it becomes clear the main wiring harness will have to be disconnected from the ECU in the passenger foot well and threaded with the FI relays back into the engine compartment and through the multiple vacume hoses, wiring, fuel injectors with the rail. All so I can slide it all down through an opening between intake #3 and #4. I rerouted it around the manifold upon installation.

The gasket was for sure needing replacement which helps to make the job feel worthwhile. The thermostat sensor also in need of a change. I cleaned around the intake holes on the block with a rag and some throttle cleanser. Earlier in the day I had washed the engine with some degreaser focusing on the area where the block meets the intake. Got some of it looking back to silver to match the valve covers new shine from earlier. The intake manifold was dusty and spotted with remains of some kind of fluid. A medium sized wire brush did a great job at getting a fresh silver look. I got a large used piece of cardboard under the intake manifold and sprayed throttle body cleanser through out and cleaned the ports for the fuel injectors. I got it looking pretty good but next time I think the removal of the throttle body will enable me to take the manifold to the car wash and really get the thing inside and out looking new. Next time as in my other Volvo 244 sedan. Notice the 44 sedan and 45 wagon. 240 as in plural for 244 and 245. Just some teaching of the Volvarian language.

The procedure in the manual for reassembly is to just go in reverse. Pretty simple if you can remember everything. I used for the first time a magnet page to hold all the bolts in order which helped. The only real mistake happened right at first. I forgot to check the one lonely bolt that connects to the under middle side of the intake manifold. The other 9 fit up top against the engine this one is bolted to a steal arm reaching up from the engine mount. I had to take all the top bolts off again and remove the intake to get the steal arm about 3 inches towards the intake hose. Once I got the manifold bolted on everything else went pretty quick. The sun was almost down at this point and a good 6 hours of stretching the legs and bending the back into the engine was over. Its been 15 hours since I finished the task and my everything aches. A little harder than the front brakes and rotors I replaced earlier in the week on the 86 244. I got the rotors half off the usual $40 each and the brake pads came from a trunk at the junk yard a few years ago for $15. Today I might change out a fuel pump and try the IAC (Idle Control Valve, helps to regulate the idle speed) from the sedan to try and cure the bad idle at cold start.

video link: Blurt, the new magazine taking the place of Harp. Great reviews and videos online.
The video is of the band fleet foxes. They are the big hype at the moment, opening for Wilco in the coming weeks. Their show this past week got cancelled here near home. Oh well. I like the actual cinema in the film and how it works with the music.
http://www.blurt-online.com/video/view/84/

Iceburn 007

2007-12-22T12:08:00.001-08:00

Iceburn photos from 2007. The band reunited for the Slug Aniversary show early in the year and again during the hot summer. These photos are from the first show. Also playing that night was Salt Lake legends The Stench.