Uber Helper

Yesterday we got busy ... a change to the oil tank vent pipe was an easy task for Gryper and the Uber Helper.

Uber helper then went inside to help Mrs G.

Then he got all independent on us and took over.

What a guy!

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Disappointed

A couple of weeks ago, I took the fingerboard and all the extra bits off of my violin so I could varnish it. I was really anxious about it, since this is what the world sees, any mistakes at this point will show.

I steeped a really strong pot of tea, (five bags in a cup of water), then used that to put a base of colour on the wood. It was paler than I expected, but that's okay. Then I put on two coats of clear varnish. So far, so good.

Next step is the red-brown varnish. I put it on and it seemed a bit streaky on the neck and sides, but, I thought that after a few coats, it wouldn't show. Then I did the back, streaky with a few small lumps of red, I thought it was a bit weird, but I can sand the surface with fine paper. I thinned it down with some turpentine, calmed myself and started on the front. To my horror, the varnish was very streaky, lots of bits of colour on the surface and other areas, no colour at all. I frantically tried to wipe it off with turpentine and a rag. It came off in blotches.

My next step was to calm myself and think about it. Unfortunately, we were going to be with friends for supper and I had to work at being any fun at all.

The next day, I got out my sand paper, sanded the surfaces of the front and back, and lightly sanded the sides, then used the 2400 grit to smooth it so I could give it another try. I added more turpentine and tried it on a some maple, looked okay, then on a piece of white paper. It had the little streaky blobs in it, as if the varnish was coloured with pigments and they needed to settle.

I let it settle for a day. There was a lot of sediment on the bottom the next day, so I thought, okay, here we go again. Not bad on the neck and scroll, okay on the back, on the front, same nasty mess. Again with turpentine, I tried to take it off and it was a streaky mess.

I got off as much as I could, let it dry, then took a scraper to it and started scraping it down to the bare wood. At that point I decided to call the company (International Violin Supply) that the varnish came from. (This varnish applies very well and virtually anyone can do a good job when using it, blah, blah, blah.)

I explain the problem I've been having and Dude says, "Yeah, that happens once in a while. We don't know why, I'll send you a fresh bottle and hopefully it won't happen again."

That is so unsatisfying. An apology would have been nice, his acting surprised would have even been a bit of comfort.

So, I'm scraping all the varnish off, back to the wood. Roll 'em, take two. I haven't decided if I'll take it off completely, or just the bad parts and use their "fresh bottle" or just the worst parts. I am concerned that if I don't take it all off and start fresh, that I won't be happy with the end result. Maybe I'll look at some other options for varnish.

Thanks for listening.

~~~

Packing & Relaxing

We had a very busy day ... as you can see Froggie was busy packing Mrs Potts.

Then Froggie Friend says "see ya later" and Froggie tucks him into a cushion of paper and pops him in the box.

After such a busy day, one must take some time to relax. Froggie chose to wind down in the soft glow of the soy candle that CG gave us.

He's such a hard worker!

Oh, Now That's Just Wrong

C'mon ... it's still early November!

And it's still coming down!

Sigh!

Self Discovery

Ever since Grandson the First was around three years old, I've told a story about him that I thought was so cute and funny. I'm sure he tired of it a long time ago, but he tolerates it and still laughs along, even after 14 years.

I was babysitting him and he wanted to watch the movie Pinocchio .... again. When I said okay, he asked "Will the bad guy steal his apple again?". I told him that that would happen every time, to which he sadly replied, "But I don't want him to do it again." We talked about it, watched the movie, and it did, much to his disappointment, happen again.

I guess I have to rethink my telling this story.

This morning I was going through my sheet music. I came across a book of vocal selections from the movie Camelot. It's my favourite movie in the whole world. I love the story, the love love triangle, all the irony, the music, the lyrics, the vocals, just everything about it.

This is what I found inside the front and back covers.

As I looked through the pictures, first, I felt that little leap in my stomach and got tears in my eyes. I thought to myself, I should watch it again soon.

Then I saw the fourth from the last picture, where Sir Lancelot is holding Mordred. I really hate Mordred. I had this brief flash go through my mind, "I wish Mordred (the bad guy), wouldn't set up Lancelot and Guinevere (steal the apple). A milli-second later, I thought of that time with Grandson the First. I'll never be able to tell it again without realizing that I'm not so different from that little three year old.

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A few weeks ago, when we were at CG's place the guys were setting off rockets. As Prince Charming ran through the field chasing on, someone called loudly, "Run Nick". I immediately thought of when when King Arthur called out "Run Boy", after he knighted a young boy, Sir Tom of Warwick, who wanted to join the Knights of the Round Table. King Arthur charged him to run behind the enemy lines and tell the world that there really once was a beautiful place called Camelot. As I told Lisa about it, I got all stupid and teary.

Now I'm here on a Sunday afternoon wanting to watch the move and I have company coming. I'll have ten people at the supper table, so, I'll have to wait - maybe next weekend- sigh. While I'm preparing for my company, I'll be singing vocal selections from Camelot though, I can picture so many of the scenes, it'll be almost like watching it.

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