Missed it by 1 second!

We had a couple of feet of snow a few weeks ago, so you know that that means!   This is a 30 minute 8 footer … that last foot is the hardest (no ladders allowed):

Helen helped me give it some more character the next day:

 

He started slowly tipping over, despite my encouragement to remain straight and strong:

But snowmen age a bit faster than the rest of us:

 

Even Irena’s mannequin was worried about him:

He eventually called it a good life, about about 1 hour after I took this photo:

And about 1 second before I took this photo …. 1 SECOND!   Ah for a slightly faster camera.   He was impossibly horizontal!

And for completeness, 1 week later:

We had a fun Thanksgiving.   Boris shared with us the joys of cooking Salmon with Pomegranate seeds:

Along with lots of other good food:

Noah and Inna, a friend from NY, flew in for a few days.  Here Noah is trying to figure out why a bird (on the deck chair) constantly perches on our deck and  periodically and deliberately flies into our window:

Our leading theory was he was being territorial and trying to scare away the competition, which looks remarkably like him.    We solved the problem by sitting a stuffed gorilla where he normally perched. 

The rest of our curtains arrive next week.    To prep for them, I bought a 26’ multi-function ladder and strung the wiring to supply power to the motors:

 

In the mean time, I’ve been playing with another project.   We have been enjoying our hot tub:

But feeling a bit guilty about the energy use.    So I researched the best way to leverage solar energy to heat water in cold temperatures.  Turns out to be evacuated solar tubes:

   http://www.solarpanelsplus.com/evacuated-tube-collectors

Invented in the US, but popularized and affordable-ized in China.    Initially I ordered a set from China, but shipping 2xed the cost, and required a “slow boat”.    So I found a state side supplier:

Got so excited, I assembled it in our kitchen before I figured out I couldn’t move it down the stairs:

So I dis-assembled, moved, and re-assembled:

I currently have it jury-rigged, testing out how well they work, deciding where to put them and if 16 tubes is enough:

Those little panels on the left are cheap (in-efficient) photo-voltaics that power a small submersible pump, so no external electricity or valves are needed.  

One last, yet another sunset, photo:

Bruce

Inappropriate handling of a woman

Only a small mystery in this photo:

The mystery is not who (I confess, is me), but rather what (am I doing!)

 

Our leaves are finally Falling, very pretty:

 

Until this last week, we were getting flowers from our yard:

And the Stink bugs are doing their annual Fall invasion.   I heard they stink when squished, so I was battling them by trying to just strategically squishing their brains, as brains don’t stink (at least they shouldn’t).    Then I got curious and big time squished a couple.    No stink:

I was actually a little disappointed.    I was going to invent a stink bomb contraption that auto squished a bunch of them and hurl it at this Rat who keeps stealing the bird’s food.   Lacking that, I just yelled at him, which seemed to work also:

We got a sneak peak at the first draft of the self help motivation book that Nick wrote this summer.   I loaded it up on the Ipad, then Helen started reading it when driving to/from a party.   It was so engaging, I had a hard time getting her out of the car!

This photo is from one of our recent parties.    She is teaching the dog how to hide low in the forest then stick his leg up in order to trip up a bad guy flying low over head on a Star Wars flying motorcycle.  I think the the $8 billion Disney Star Wars franchise resurrection should use dogs in stead of wookies.

 

Our friends fireplace behind Helen inspired me to re-do our living room fireplace.   I converted it from a sand pit vented burner to a metal/glass ventless burner, so we can run without so much wasted heat up the chimney.   Really pretty with all the reflections:

 

My other project has been how to curtain up our vast window wall.   After 2 summers and winters, I‘ve concluded that the temperature swing is too much with uncovered windows.    For the last few months, every week, I decided on a new curtain type.   Then switched to another scheme the next week.    Finally, motorized cellular shades stuck for a month, so I ordered a test shade from the internets:

Works great!  Tomorrow I order the other 15 shades,  $4000 worth!    Still better than the $12,000 estimate I got from the local shade guys.

So, back to that initial mischievous Bruce picture.      My hand is indeed mis-placed on a woman’s body, but her head was also mis-placed, so I didn’t feel so bad:

We are helping Irena dress up a mannequin for posting some of her fancy cloths on Craigslist:

Helen is having fun taking embarrassing photos of us in the process:

And trying to teach me (unsuccessfully) how to model:

This is our model admiring our new curtain:

Irena made Helen promise not to mess with her mannequin until after we have all her photos done, as she knows Helen’s propensity for unusual modifications.     But after she has her photos,  then she says Helen can have her.      I’m more than a little bit scared of what might come of that!

 

Bruce