Tuesday, 5-20-08 at 7:53 MDT
The trip is so close, I am getting so anxious.
I have an interview today with Chemical Engineering.
WX report: 65.1°F, 34% humidity, sunny.
NWS report: hi 92°F, 5-10 mph north wind, mostly sunny, fire watch.
Monday, 5-19-08 at 9:03 MDT
Cleaning black powder rifles is so cumbersome, but shooting them is so much fun.
WX report: 64.2°F, 34% humidity, sunny.
NWS report: hi 92°F, 10 mph west winds, mostly sunny, fire watch.
Sunday, 5-18-08 at 13:08 MDT
Looks like the plains may open up in a few days. Better get ready!
WX report: 70.0°F, 36% humidity, mostly sunny.
NWS report: hi 86°F, 10-15 mph west winds, mostly sunny.
Sabbath, 5-17-08 at 23:00 MDT
Congratulations to all the graduates! My girlfriend graduated today with her BS in Physics.
WX report: 59.5°F, 41% humidity, breezy.
NWS report: lo 48°F, 5 mph west winds, partly cloudy.
Thursday, 5-15-08 at 23:13 MDT
Looks like an A in graduate seminar (I didn’t know we got graded?), and an A- in my education class.
WX report: 50.7°F, 49% humidity, overcast. It has been nasty weather for the last few days. It’s cold and rainy, and it will be for a few more days.
NWS report: lo 44°F, 10mph northeast winds, 10% chance of showers and thunderstorms.
Wednesday, 5-14-08 at 8:02 MDT
No low level shear hurt the chase team yesterday. It sounds like they caught storms, but no tornadoes.
I updated my logbooks online. I am hoping this storm chase will add a few hundred QSOS. I have not yet operated from UT, SD, or CA, so maybe I’ll pick up a few of those on this adventure.
WX report: We had quite a bit of rain last night, with some thunder and lightning. 49.3°F, 32% humidity, overcast.
NWS report: hi 65°F, 10-15mph northwest to west winds, chance of am thunderstorms, mostly cloudy, 60% chance of precipitation.
Tuesday, 5-13-08 at 7:50 MDT
The VT crew is positioned inside a moderate risk today. The odds look pretty good…
I spent yesterday in Albuquerque at Grainger getting a sensor that might work for the manipulator. Today, we’ll see if it works.
WX report: 60.8°F, 21% humidity, sunny.
NWS report: hi 78°F, 15-25 mph south winds, mostly sunny.
Monday, 5-12-08 at 8:03 MDT
The VT crew made it to Little Rock last night, and might have severe weather potential for tomorrow in OK. We’ll see how it all pans out.
WX report: 69.5°F, 23% humidity, some clouds.
NWS report: hi 87°F, 10-15 mph south winds increasing to 25-30 mph, mostly sunny.
Sunday, 5-11-08 at 10:35 MDT
Good luck to the VT storm chase team! You’re gonna need it, it looks quiet for a few days…
WX report: 65.1°F, 21% humidity, sunny.
NWS report: hi 83°F, 10-15mph west winds, mostly sunny.
Sabbath, 5-10-08 at 7:49 MDT
Today will consist of a CMP shoot this morning, a drive to the Quebradas this afternoon, and some other things not quite planned yet.
WX report: 62.8°F, 21% humidity, sunny.
NWS report: hi 84°F, 10-20mph west winds, sunny.
Friday, 5-9-08 at 8:20 MDT
Part of the problem with the manipulator is that it was floating at 120V AC. It was not grounded at all. When I grounded it brute force to some plumbing, suddenly the x-axis functions properly.
WX report: 61.5°F, 21% humidity, partly cloudy.
NWS report: upper 70s hi, 10-20mph west winds, partly cloudy.
Thursday, 5-8-08 at 9:40 MDT
I updated my shooting scores.
Today will mostly consist of working on the manipulator and filling out a ton of paperwork.
WX report: 67.6°F, 23% humidity, partly sunny.
NWS report: 86°F hi, 10-20mph west winds, mostly sunny.
Wednesday, 5-7-08 at 21:39 MDT
I didn’t get a chance to post this morning.
Today has been a pretty good day. I had a long chat with an old friend from way back in the day. I also got an A- in my education class.
WX report: 72.5°F, 22% humidity, clear.
Tuesday, 5-6-08 at 14:35 MDT
The manipulator is pretty screwed up. It is going to be difficult to fix.
WX report: 77.5°F, 22% humidity, light cumulus.
Monday, 5-5-08 at 8:24 MDT
We went to Phoenix for the weekend and had a pretty good time. There was a bead show that kept my girlfriend entertained. We all saw the Diamondbacks lose to the Mets at Chase Field on Sunday afternoon. I also picked up 5 new counties from the mobile, bringing me to 141.
WX report: 64.0°F, 22% humidity, clear.
Friday, 5-2-08 at 8:09 MDT
Unfortunately, Miss Curiosity passed away yesterday morning. She was around 19 years old, and my girlfriend had adopted her from outside of a Cleveland restaurant in the early months of 1990. The little old lady was a good friend to all of us and will be missed.
WX report: 50.0°F, 21% humidity, clear, maybe breezy. We keep losing our tomato plants to the cold snaps. Next year, I’ll build a cold-frame.
Thursday, 5-1-08 at 7:59 MDT
Time for a monthly update:
Books read: 5, The Complete Metalsmith by Tim McCreight, Introduction to Foundry Techniques by Ekey and Winter, The Differentiated Classroom by someone from UVA, Chemistry: Principles and Reactions by Masterton and Hurley and X-Ray Diffraction by Suryanarayana and Norton
Books of the Bible Read: 20, Acts-Revelation
Periodicals Read: 8
HF Contacts made: 4
Best Jog Time: not timing
Best Morse Code Score: 85.2% at 20WPM x2 spacing, 4 word streak
Miles Biked: none
Farthest Distance Traveled: Albuquerque, NM
Biggest Accomplishment: Not too much this month
WX report: 64.6°F, 20% humidity, light cirrocumulus.
Wednesday, 4-30-08 at 8:39 MDT
Falling farther behind.
WX report: 57.4°F, 23% humidity, clear.
Tuesday, 4-29-08 at 8:30 MDT
So much to do. So far behind. Not much point in the end result at this point.
WX report: 53.2°F, 24% humidity, clear.
Monday, 4-28-08 at 8:04 MDT
Today, I intend to finish spraying nickel, machine the baseplate for my radio box and print my teacher toolbox and education journal. I managed to finish all gas flow rates, nickel feed rates, read all of the journal articles I had, request more articles, and finish my education journal and toolbox yesterday. Overall, a productive day yesterday.
I also managed to get locked in the campus post office yesterday for 20 minutes or so. The door shut behind me and the pins that hold the doors together fell together, causing me to be locked in. The door was technically unlocked, but the doors were held together. I was eventually able to kick them open. Thankfully, the building wasn’t on fire or anything. If the doors were damaged by my kicking, go ahead and call me at 1-800-kiss-my-ass.
WX report: 50.7°F, 24% humidity, clear.
Sunday, 4-27-08 at 9:22 MDT
Today will be a long day. I would like to finish my feed rates, find yttria powder gas flow rates, and finish spraying nickel. I would also like to machine parts of my radio box, mainly the baseplate. When I get home, I’ll want to work on my teacher toolbox and finish my education journal. I might get a chance to read a few more plasma spray articles. We’ll see how much I actually get done.
WX report: 50.9°F, 21% humidity, clear.
Sabbath, 4-26-08 at 9:31 MDT
SPC has a slight risk up, but I don’t see 100% why.
Yesterday was senior design presentations, so congratulations to all of those who presented. No congratulations to the professors who didn’t show up.
WX report: 57.0°F, 21% humidity, hazy.
Thursday, 4-24-08 at 8:20 MDT
Hays, KS would be my target for today.
Today is already busy and it hasn’t even started yet. I have a ton of stuff to do in the spray lab. Let’s see how much I can get done…
WX report: 61.9°F, 21% humidity, clear.
Wednesday, 4-23-08 at 7:59 MDT
I debated making a run to Childress, TX for today, but I don’t think it’s actually feasible, so I won’t…. SPC has a moderate risk, 10% tornado risk area for parts of TX/OK.
WX report: 55.2°F, 21% humidity, clear.
Tuesday, 4-22-08 at 7:51 MDT
Take everything I said yesterday…. and put it in for today, as I got almost nothing done yesterday. I did get to work on my in school service journal…. only a few more hours left and I’ll be done with that assignment.
I have been tumbling brass almost non-stop. Did around 1000 9mm and 200 .243 Win yesterday.
WX report: 53.8°F, 24% humidity, clear.
Monday, 4-21-08 at 7:57 MDT
This will be a super busy week. I need to finish my in-school hours, plus help the senior design group finish up their project. There will be much spraying and work. Yesterday, I got the arc gas and aux gas flow rates finished, and then blew up part of the gun. I repaired what I could and it should be finished drying by now.
WX report: 50.0°F, 21% humidity, clear.
Sunday, 4-20-08 at 7:39 MDT
Today will be a work day. I’d like to finish my velocities, flow rates, and maybe a 23 factorial for nickel powder.
WX report: 55.4°F, 21% humidity, clear.
Sabbath, 4-19-08 at 13:14 MDT
Joey got 7th in the district!
WX report: 62.8°F, 21% humidity, overcast.
Friday, 4-18-08 at 7:51 MDT
We will see how the interview went.
Joey is in the district spelling bee today. Wish him luck!
WX report: 42.6°F, 23% humidity, clear.
Thursday, 4-17-08 at 7:33 MDT
So much to do and so little time. Today is my interview, so wish me luck! When I get back, I need to get some paperwork taken care of for the shooting sports club and update the website for the materials club. I also need to get my flow rates measured and get a few more experiments out the door.
Yesterday, after almost four years of slumber, the TARA station came to life. I made three SSB QSOs on 20m. The last logged entry was in 2004, before the hail storm.
WX report: 47.1°F, 23% humidity, breezy and overcast.
Wednesday, 4-16-08 at 7:22 MDT
One year ago today, things were much different. I started out the morning looking for my escapee turtle, then went to work. I got a call from Mom saying 2 people had been killed at VT. Wow.. but really not that unusual for a town of 30,000 to have a murder or two once in a while. Then Kirsten called. Then Mom again. Then Dad. Then Jimmy. Then Dr. Bond came into my office. Then Ian. Then Andrew. Then it was 22. Then I’d had enough school for one day, and went home. The girlfriend was on a field trip, so I picked up Joey from school. Then I took him over to watch Matt and Theresa pour molten metal, but it was delayed. Then more calls: Suzi, Cindy, Liz. Then I checked instant messenger. Then there were messages from Leigh, Beth, Melissa. Then I made some calls: Jenny, Mike, Dave. Then I got on Facebook. Then there was a group: I’m okay at VT. Then there were names, both well and not. Then there were classrooms. Then there were whole class rosters. I mean, whole classes. Then there was the press conference. Then there were 32. 32 plus the one responsible for all of this, may he be forgotten.
Tuesday, 4-15-08 at 7:14 MDT
The antenna repair got bumped to today. I’ll also need to finish my lesson plan, my presentation for tomorrow, and meet with the EE senior design guys. I installed the dump valves yesterday, so hopefully the system will work now.
WX report: 47.8°F, 27% humidity, clear.
Monday, 4-14-08 at 7:36 MDT
This week is going to be busy. Monday: put up club antenna. Tuesday: Give lesson plan to education class. Wednesday: Give a presentation to Graduate Seminar. Thursday: Interview. Friday: Chair a session at the GSA Conference.
WX report: 51.1°F, 25% humidity, clear.
Sunday, 4-13-08 at 10:19 MDT
We had dinner with Kirsten last night- long time, no see!!
I’m really looking forward to this interview on Thursday.
WX report: 51.1°F, 26% humidity, clear.
Sabbath, 4-12-08 at 10:39 MDT
It looks like the plains are going to settle down for at least a week or so. Good, don’t produce a bunch of tornadoes when I’m not around.
I have an interview on Thursday. I’m really looking forward to it, and I really want to work there. I can’t wait to find out, it will mean a lot to have a job lined up.
WX report: 47.1°F, 24% humidity, clear and breezy again. It’s spring in the southwest.
Friday, 4-11-08 at 7:19 MDT
Joey will be going to the district spelling bee, lasting the whole competition (they will take 12).
WX report: 46.3°F, 24% humidity, clear and breezy.
Thursday, 4-10-08 at 8:31 MDT
Joey is competing in the school spelling bee today. Last year, he made it to the top 10 in the district!
I updated my shooting scores.
WX report: 47.1°F, 25% humidity, as windy as you would expect a wasteland to be.
Wednesday, 4-9-08 at 8:16 MDT
Today would be a good day to head to Young County, TX, I think. Moderate risk, 15% hatched area for tornado risk, etc. Not that catching my first tornado there would make it a nostalgic trip, or anything…
WX report: 58.3°F, 23% humidity, clear, for the most part.
Tuesday, 4-8-08 at 7:51 MDT
‘Sometimes it is necessary to sacrifice personal freedoms for the welfare of the group’ a quote from my education book. Are you serious? Is this what we are supposed to teach? This was a suggested ‘lesson’ from a unit on the constitution. That’s pretty funny considering Ben Franklin said something to the effect of ‘Those who surrender their freedom for security deserve neither’. Bunch of socialists…
WX report: 53.6°F, 22% humidity, clear.
Monday, 4-7-08 at 8:04 MDT
Today looks like a good day to be chasing in OK. I would set up shop around Chicasha.
WX report: 53.4°F, 23% humidity, clear.
Sunday, 4-6-08 at 8:43 MDT
Today will be busy. So far, I’ve planned to do my education homework, plant the gardens, fix the brakes on the Taurus, fix the powder hoppers, and build the faceplate to my radio. We’ll see how many get done.
WX report: 58.8°F, 24% humidity, clear.
Sabbath, 4-5-08 at 6:58 MDT
I think this whole thesis thing might work out in the end. We will see…
Slow day in the plains, though the east coast might have some storms.
I think I’ll spend my day of rest shooting, going to Ian’s BBQ, and playing with radios. I watched baseball yesterday- Orioles won and the Indians lost, which are the two teams that matter in this house.
WX report: 44.6°F, 25% humidity, clear.
Friday, 4-4-08 at 7:45 MDT
Starting over is hard to do. Especially when it’s your thesis and you are asked to redo three years of work in six weeks with no budget, no outside help (i.e. workers required for equipment), and have busted equipment.
I think I called it pretty well yesterday. If I spent the morning in Ardmore, I could have made it to most of the storms yesterday. Today, the slight risk is in the south, not in the Plains, so I probably wouldn’t chase there anyway.
WX report: 49.6°F, 23% humidity, clear.
Thursday, 4-3-08 at 8:11 MDT
Today is the big day. Thesis proposal at 2PM.
It looks like a big day in the plains as well. I would say Ardmore, OK would be a good starting place today…
WX report: 53.8°F, 22% humidity, sunny.
Wednesday, 4-2-08 at 8:17 MDT
Today is not a clear choice. I would head to McAlester, OK, mostly for the Day 2 outlook. SPC says there could be a shortwave interacting with a stalled front and some stuff about a ridge developing… I don’t see what they are worried about yet. The dewpoints are still low (REALLY low), some light clouds, etc. I’m not expecting much, and I don’t think they are either (less than 2% threat of tornadoes everywhere).
WX report: 50.7°F, 22% humidity, overcast, slightly clearing in the south.
Tuesday, 4-1-08 at 7:40 MDT
I called a little too far north yesterday from what would have been good chase country. There were a few discrete cells in TX, but Bartlesville was too far north.
Time for a monthly update:
Books read: 2, Teaching with the Brain in Mind, Eric Jensen, Boss of Bosses, Joseph O’Brien and Andris Kurins
Books of the Bible Read: 2, Luke and John
Periodicals Read: 9
HF Contacts made: 37
Best Jog Time: not timing
Best Morse Code Score: 78.8% at 20WPM x2 spacing, 4 word streak
Miles Biked: none
Farthest Distance Traveled: Morenci, AZ
Biggest Accomplishment: Getting my proposal date set
Monday, 3-31-08 at 7:49 MDT
I played softball yesterday for the first time in years. I even batted 1.000, getting two singles at two at bats.
Yesterday, I called Woodward, OK. Today, I’ll say Bartlesville, OK. There is a dryline and a warm front that will probably intersect somewhere near there later today. From there, a gravity wave will pass through at some point, and we’ll have a nice triple point set up. Timing and daytime heating will be everything today, though SPC is calling for 1500-3000J/kg CAPE in that area and have already issued a moderate risk.
WX report: 57.4°F, 22% humidity, clear.
Sunday, 3-30-08 at 2:59 MDT
Got back from Santa Fe tonight, but I’ve got too much to do to sleep tonight.
Taking breaks from work, I finished my QSO pages, all are up to date.
WX report: 57.5°F, 22% humidity, clear.
Friday, 3-28-08 at 7:27 MDT
My proposal needs some real work. I have some major problems to fix…
I uploaded my Canada QSOs today. Tomorrow will likely be the Caribbean.
WX report: 48.9°F, 22% humidity, haven’t looked out the window yet.
Thursday, 3-27-08 at 12:06 MDT
My days are just getting wound up and only going to get worse…
Today was supposed to be dedicated to modeling, as the water was going to be shut off in my building. I rescheduled my whole work week around this, and today, P-plant reschedules the water shutdown for next week.
I have finished uploading my QSOs for the US and Oceania (up to the start of 2008). Tomorrow might include Canada.
WX report: 66.0°F, 23% humidity, clear.
Wednesday, 3-26-08 at 12:07 MDT
Hectic day today.
I added NC, VA, HI, MT, LA, FL, MI, IN, AL, KS, AZ, NV, and VT today. Tomorrow will finish out the US, at least for 2007. On a related note, I received my SSB 2007 Sweepstakes participation pin for
WX report: 63.7°F, 25% humidity, overcast.
Tuesday, 3-25-08 at 16:40 MDT
Proposal has been sent off!!! Now to present it…
I updated my QSO page for MD and WA, probably the two biggest sections left. Tomorrow will be NC, VA, HI, MT and LA. WX report: 73.4°F, 24% humidity, clear and nice.
Monday, 3-24-08 at 9:52 MDT
Proposal sent for final approval…
More updates later.
WX report: 46.2°F, 35% humidity, clear.
Sunday, 3-23-08 at 9:31 MDT
HAPPY EASTER!! Joey will be looking for Easter Eggs in the back yard soon…
I have updated my QSO page a bit more, adding QSOs made to IL, PA, and MA. Tomorrow will be MO, IA, OH and KY. So many more to go…
WX report: 48.0°F, 31% humidity, clear.
Sabbath, 3-22-08 at 23:28 MDT
It’s been pretty nice the last few days, but I think it might turn cold tonight, if my knees, ankles and wrists are any indication…
WX report: 55.2°F, 24% humidity, scattered high clouds.
Friday, 3-21-08 at 8:16 MDT
I should finish my proposal writing today. I am really just adding stuff to one section and that’s it.
WX report: 52.0°F, 22% humidity, clear.
Thursday, 3-20-08 at 18:32 MDT
I picked up some .243 brass cheap at the pawn shop today. People will pawn off the most ridiculous stuff. The pawn shop manager said someone tried to pawn off a single jersey glove and a Holiday Inn pen.
My handguards arrived today and were promptly sanded and finished. Soon it will be a complete rifle!
WX report: 75.0°F, 21% humidity, clear.
Wednesday, 3-19-08 at 11:57 MDT
Stupid computer printed my comment on Collegiate Times 4 separate times.
WX report: 53.4°F, 24% humidity, clear.
Tuesday, 3-18-08 at 7:41 MDT
My thesis proposal date will be 4/3 at 2:00. Finally getting some of this work out of the way.
WX report: 37.4°F, 24% humidity, sunny.
Monday, 3-17-08 at 8:39 MDT
Against all odds, I added my new mobile QSOs yesterday. Now things get really busy.
WX report: 41.0°F, 26% humidity, breezy.
Sunday, 3-16-08 at 12:08 MDT
Hopefully, I will add the latest QSOs onto my logbook pages in the near future. However, I am trying to get my proposal ready, and that takes up most of my time at this point.
WX report: 62.8°F, 22% humidity, wind from the south.
Sabbath, 3-15-08 at 12:29 MDT
It looks like it is going to be a beautiful day here in New Mexico.
WX report: 63.3°F, 22% humidity, very light cirrocumulus in the west.
Friday, 3-14-08 at 23:16 MDT
Back from the interview, which I think went pretty well. I also picked up 7 new counties.
WX report: 59.7°F, 22% humidity, clear.
Thursday, 3-13-08 at 8:03 MDT
Today is going to be too busy. Off to Albuquerque and then to Morenci, AZ.
WX report: 49.1°F, 27% humidity, sunny.
Wednesday, 3-12-08 at 7:56 MDT
Today is an early release day for Joey, but once my girlfriend gets back from work, I’ll go back into work and tie up a few loose ends before leaving for a few days.
I have reassembled my M1 and ordered both handguards. I only had the one, and now I don’t (come to think of it, I don’t remember the last time I saw it). I also sized around 2000 .45 ACP cases yesterday
I have started to update my other logs as well. They’ll be up over the next week or so.
WX report: 38.1°F, 24% humidity, overcast.
Tuesday, 3-11-08 at 7:39 MDT
Yesterday was a pretty good day. I got accepted into Mississippi State University’s Distance Ed Broadcast Meteorology Program, I learned I’ll get some tax money back in May, and I got my AR lower receiver parts kit, and the first 31 pages of my thesis only had a few corrections. All in all, a pretty good day!
Today will be busy, but how busy and where I’ll be busy are still unfolding.
WX report: 40.1°F, 27% humidity, sunny.
Monday, 3-10-08 at 7:55 MDT
It’s still dark at 7am, and that’s no good.
My spring break has officially begun. Not that it matters- I have some in-school stuff today, plus I will work and shoot air rifle tonight. My girlfriend is attending a seminar, so I’ll be in charge of getting Joey to school and picking him up til Wednesday morning. Thursday, we hit a job fair in Albuquerque, and then I drive to AZ for an interview, coming back Friday. So much for a ‘break’!
WX report: 50.9°F, 29% humidity, sunny.
Sunday, 3-9-08 at 16:48 MDT
Update: Malibu QSO log complete, all 1032 QSOs listed (in addition to the 400-500+ QSOs in the other mobile log from when I had the Malibu). Not too bad, my first QSO from the Malibu was June 18, 2005, from Tennessee as I moved out to New Mexico.
Gardens turned over, parasite date trees cut down. Mission accomplished!
WX report: 56.3°F, 25% humidity, mostly cloudy.
Sunday, 3-9-08 at 11:27 MDT
Happy Daylight Savings Time! My phone has not switched yet, I wonder if it will…
I am part of the way through Nebraska on my Malibu QSOs page. I’ve been adding a few each day, leaving me with like another 100 QSOs to go. Because I’m driving to AZ, I hope to add a few new ones as well- in New Mexico: Catron, Hidalgo, Grant, Luna, and Dona Ana, and in Arizona: Greenlee, Graham, and perhaps Apache. Today, we will work out in the garden, turning in some good top soil, and perhaps moving a rose bush.
WX report: 50.2°F, 31% humidity, mostly cloudy.
Sabbath, 3-8-08 at 8:16 MST
So much to do and so little time. I feel like I’m moving in slow motion, but I’m knocking things out. I added a coat of polyurethane to my stock, but I still can’t find the handguard. I also updated my Malibu QSOs log- I’m up through IA on the Christmas trip, only a few states left.
WX report: 51.6°F, 22% humidity, partly cloudy.
Friday, 3-7-08 at 8:16 MST
I have an interview in Morenci, AZ next week. We’ll see how that goes.
WX report: 34.7°F, 28% humidity, sunny.
Thursday, 3-6-08 at 11:17 MST
Happy Birthday Mom!!!!!!!!
WX report: 41.7°F, 31% humidity, mostly cloudy.
Wednesday, 3-5-08 at 7:58 MST
Yesterday was relatively unproductive, though I did get my thesis draft submitted. I’m not super happy with it, but it will do.
WX report: 39.9°F, 28% humidity, sunny.
Tuesday, 3-4-08 at 8:01 MST
I forgot to mention yesterday that I put the first coat of stain on my M1 stock and it looks pretty good. I also corrected a letter for Will, sprayed (unsuccessfully) some yttria, ran the dilatometer, put an hour in-service at the high school, wrote my teaching philosophy, and held a shooting sports club meeting. Today will be equally as busy…
WX report: 31.3°F, 27% humidity, sunny.
Monday, 3-3-08 at 6:53 MST
Yesterday, we dug out a new garden bed along the fence in the backyard. We’ll put some tomatoes in there. We will also plant lettuce, chile peppers, squash, peas, beans, and strawberries.
Today will consist of time at the high school, plus working on my ‘teaching philosophy’, plasma spraying, dilatometer work, furnace testing some coatings, seeing what is salvageable on Richard’s bike, and hopefully finishing my thesis, all before air rifle practice. It’s going to be a busy day…
WX report: we had a cold front move through almost instantaneously yesterday (20 degree drop in like 5 minutes): 33.8°F, 31% humidity, sunny.
Sunday, 3-2-08 at 10:01 MST
My day today will consist of doing some stuff at work and then working in the yard. I need to put some samples in the furnace, run another dilatometer run, and clean up the yttria hopper in hopes of getting useful data on Monday. We will also turn over the dead tomatoes and peppers and get the second garden ready for planting in a few weeks.
WX report: 57.7°F, 30% humidity, light cumulus…almost the same as yesterday an hour later.
Sabbath, 3-1-08 at 11:35 MST
My phone is officially dead, and a new one will arrive on Tuesday. I’ll keep the same number, but call me so I have your number again.
Time for a monthly update:
Books read: 3, Be My Guest (Conrad Hilton), Triple Ought (I forget), Composite Materials Vol. II: Mechanical Properties of Composite Materials (I forget).
Books of the Bible Read: 2, Matthew and Mark
Periodicals Read: 4
HF Contacts made: 26
Best Jog Time: not timing, jogging up stairs
Best Morse Code Score: 77.2% at 20WPM x2 spacing, 4 word streak
Miles Biked: none
Farthest Distance Traveled: Denver, CO
Biggest Accomplishment: Spraying nickel at 31% efficiency instead of 0.5% efficiency.
WX report: 57.7°F, 30% humidity, sunny.
Friday, 2-29-08 at 7:42 MST
My order was not going to be processed until like June, so I said screw that, cancelled it, and placed it with another company. The other company also had an AR-15 lower receiver parts kit… so I have one of those on order as well.
I worked on my radio box last night, and I think I have it laid out the way I want it. Now to make brackets, buy some screws, and build connectors…
WX report: 43.5°F, 26% humidity, sunny.
Thursday, 2-28-08 at 7:43 MST
Last night, I worked on my M1. I sanded the stock down with 320 and then 400 grit sandpaper, and it is looking and feeling pretty good. If only I could find the handguard, I could sand it and be ready to stain… I also ordered some parts (end-bloc clips, 2-rd competition clip and cleaning kit that stores in the stock), so I’m all excited.
WX report: 34.9°F, 25% humidity, sunny.
Wednesday, 2-27-08 at 7:19 MST
Today will be mostly wasted day. I need to do some spraying, but Jones Hall will not have any running water today. This happens every few weeks…
I have updated my mobile QSOs and have finished 2007. All that is left for me to update are the QSOs made this year- which means I still have plenty to go. On our road trip, I am through PA, leaving me with OH, IL, IA, NE, WY, CO, and NM, plus I did some smaller trips around here to pick up a few more.
WX report: 33.4°F, 28% humidity, sunny.
Tuesday, 2-26-08 at 7:42 MST
I will hopefully finish a major spray run today and be able to finish my proposal. I only have a few pages of editing left, but I need to recollect a few data points before I can turn it in.
I have updated my shooting scores.
WX report: 38.8°F, 32% humidity, sunny.
Monday, 2-25-08 at 7:55 MST
A few more lines in my QSO long. Little by little it is becoming complete.
WX report: 53.4°F, 31% humidity, and I hear more wind.
Sunday, 2-24-08 at 20:20 MST
We went for a little ride out to Carizozo and found a set of dirt roads that led back to Bingham. Quite an adventure, as I had to clear cattle out of the road for a few miles of it…
Little by little, I am updating my QSO logs. Each day, I add a few counties and will hopefully finish up in the next week or so. Then I can turn my attention to Socorro county QSOs from my base station.
WX report: 67.6°F, 31% humidity, windy.
Sabbath, 2-23-08 at 18:06 MST
I feel like a jet fighter made out of biceps!
WX report: 52.0°F, 29% humidity, windy.
Friday, 2-22-08 at 7:44 MST
Feeling better today, amazingly. It has taken around a week. Now it’s time to work myself sick catching up…
WX report: 37.2°F, 33% humidity, sunny.
Thursday, 2-21-08 at 7:26 MST
Still fighting the flu I developed on Friday. Ugh.
WX report: 43.5°F, 42% humidity, overcast.
Friday, 2-15-08 at 8:10 MST
The shooting at NIU was crazy. Please pray for the families of those students.
Off to Denver!!!
WX report: 46.2°F, 28% humidity, overcast.
Thursday, 2-14-08 at 7:03 MST
Tomorrow, I head for Denver for the Storm Chase Conference. I’m excited!!
WX report: 44.8°F, 26% humidity, sunny.
Wednesday, 2-13-08 at 13:40 MST
I forgot to upload the scores yesterday, but I did now. I added a few mobile QSOs to my log page as well. MANY MANY more to come. My logs are so far behind.
WX report: 62.8°F, 28% humidity, breezy.
Tuesday, 2-12-08 at 15:32 MST
Today has been relatively busy between the thermomechanical properties lab, working on my thesis and getting ready for my education class.
I have updated my shooting scores.
WX report: 57°F, 28% humidity, breezy.
Monday, 2-11-08 at 6:52 MST
We went for a little drive into Torrance County to make a few mobile QSOs and to see the Abo Ruins. It was pretty cool, I will post photos sometime soon.
Today is my first day in the high school… wish me luck.
WX report: 35.8°F, 23% humidity, sunny.
Sunday, 2-10-08 at 13:29 MST
Trying to stay on top of everything that needs to be done. My to do list for the day is pretty extensive.
I broke a several week slump and made a few HF QSOs today. So far, I haven’t been too active this month!!
WX report: 53.6°F, 25% humidity, sunny. It’s a nice day outside.
Sabbath, 2-9-08 at 7:49 MST
We have another cat! He kinda jumped into our car, and now he’s in our house.
I am off to the range to do a little skeet shooting.
WX report: 32.0°F, 28% humidity, sunny.
Friday, 2-8-08 at 7:31 MST
Wow, another 7:31am post. Routine much?
I will spend today editing my proposal and trying to get the DTA/TGA working the way I want it to work.
I now manage the storm chase club, which provides $500 for gasoline hehe.
WX report: 40.8°F, 32% humidity, windy (from the north).
Thursday, 2-7-08 at 7:13 MST
Yesterday wasn’t a half day for Joey, but keep all of yesterday’s entry, except add the DTA/TGA is not working and an important bag got stolen. Super day.
Today will be more of the same.
WX report: 34.5°F, 29% humidity, sunny.
Wednesday, 2-6-08 at 7:31 MST
It has been a hectic week so far. I’ve been playing catch-up from being in Daytona Beach.
Today, there is a club fair at NMT. I will run the booth for the Industrial Archeology club, Shooting Sports Club and Tech Amateur Radio Association. I will have my laptop there with some cartoons for Joey, as today is an early release day. My girlfriend will pick him up as soon as she gets off work so that I can go to my 2pm class.
At some point, I will need to turn in my background check paperwork for both tutoring and going into the schools for my class.
We tried to spray some nickel yesterday through internal feeding, and had no luck whatsoever. It most likely vaporizes at the high temperature. I am also having difficulty with the DTA/TGA runs. Things are crazy.
WX report: 22.8°F, 26% humidity, sunny.
Monday, 2-4-08 at 15:15 MST
Time for a monthly update. I will give a Daytona Beach, FL update at some point. Books read: 1, Unintended Consequences
Books of the Bible Read: 16, Jeremiah-Malachi (finished the Bible in under a year)
Periodicals Read: 12
HF Contacts made: 190
Best Jog Time: not timing, jogging up stairs
Best Morse Code Score: 83.2% at 20WPM x2 spacing, 4 word streak
Miles Biked: none
Farthest Distance Traveled: Cleveland, OH
Biggest Accomplishment: Making two massive road trips
WX report: 55.2°F, 25% humidity, overcast.
Thursday, 1-24-08 at 7:17 MST
Our planned trip route: I-25 to I-10 to New Orleans by 1 or so tomorrow afternoon. We’ll spend the night in New Orleans and then take I-10 to I-95 to Daytona Beach.
County hunting: I won’t be operating the whole time, but I expect to operate most of Sabbath- so from New Orleans to Daytona. LA: St. Charles, St. Tammany. MS: Hancock, Harrison, Jackson. AL: Mobile, Baldwin. FL: Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, Holmes, Washington, Jackson, Gadsden, Leon, Jefferson, Madison, Suwannee, Hamilton, Columbia, Baker, Duval, St. John’s, Flagler, and Volusia. WX report: 37.9°F, 30% humidity, flurries.
Wednesday, 1-23-08 at 21:14 MST
This time tomorrow, I’ll be east bound! I’ll try to run a few counties on the way.
WX report: 43.0°F, 24% humidity, clear.
Tuesday, 1-22-08 at 8:18 MST
I updated my shooting scores from last night’s air rifle practice.
I have received two interesting calls in the last 24 hours. One- I have an interview at Rio Tinto, as they need a process engineer. Two- Socorro county needs tutors for K-12, particularly math/science and some reading help, just a few hours a week. Kennecott is sending me a webcam (never heard of this) to do a web interview. We will see how this all goes down.
WX report: 29.1°F, 25% humidity, partly cloudy.
Monday, 1-21-08 at 8:01 MST
We spent the night in Alamagordo, and rode out to Cloudcroft and Elk. I operated from three new counties. Then we went to the IMAX Theater and watched a movie on the 12 men who walked on the moon. All in all, it was a pretty good weekend!
Thursday, I leave for Florida!!
WX report: 28.2°F, 24% humidity, sunny.
Sabbath, 1-19-08 at 11:58 MST
Today is Chuck’s birthday!!! We will visit him in Tularosa, NM.
WX report: 34.0°F, 25% humidity, sunny.
Friday, 1-18-08 at 8:09 MST
Student loan day!!
Hopefully, I will update some of my QSO pages this weekend. They have been out of date since like August.
WX report: 19.4°F, 23% humidity, sunny. Blah, that’s pretty cold.
Thursday, 1-17-08 at 14:58 MST
We had a good dinner with Chuck last night! He stopped by on his way to check on his place in Alamagordo.
I have spent most of today applying for jobs, getting powder flow rates and writing my thesis. I’ll do dishes here in a bit.
WX report: 33.1°F, 24% humidity, sunny.
Wednesday, 1-16-08 at 14:25 MST
I have been job hunting most of the morning. Joey had a half day, and the girlfriend and our neighbor went out of town, so I’m home with Joey.
WX report: 39.9°F, 28% humidity, really windy.
Tuesday, 1-15-08 at 8:06 MST
Dismal day yesterday, hopefully today will be better.
I updated my mediocre shooting scores. I had way too much caffeine yesterday to shoot well.
WX report: 27.5°F, 27% humidity, sunny.
Monday, 1-14-08 at 7:12 MST
I spent most of yesterday updating my logbook and DX4Win with all the QSOs from my trip across country. I managed to get 249 QSOs and a bunch of counties. I’m up to 125 counties that I have operated from, with a promise of a few more coming up soon.
Today will consist of some spraying, some dilatometry, and probably some more proposal revisions before air rifle practice. Apparently my proposal still needs a ton of work, so I’m back to square one.
WX report: 26.9°F, 30% humidity, a few clouds.
Sunday, 1-13-08 at 11:45 MST
Cruising right along through my reading. I’ll have read the Bible in under a year (I already have- I know I read Psalms when I was sick last February, and I’m already in Ezekiel now..), and read a bunch of Unintended Consequences today.
We watched the Manchurian Candidate last night. It is the same sort of movie as Conspiracy Theory, but a little better.
I have updated my shooting scores.
WX report: 37.0°F, 31% humidity, overcast.
Sabbath, 1-12-08 at 16:07 MST
Went out to the range last night and had a good time.
Tonight will be pizza and some movies!
WX report: 45.7°F, 31% humidity, sunny.
Friday, 1-11-08 at 9:25 MST
Glorious payday!!!
I slept in a bit this morning, I’ve been really tired these last few mornings, and I’m not sure why. I have definitely been in REM sleep, because there have been a whole ton of dreams I can’t remember.
WX report: 34.0°F, 31% humidity, sunny.
Thursday, 1-10-08 at 8:05 MST
I cast a ton of bullets yesterday- 38s and 30-30s. I had a two cavity 30 cal mold and a four cavity 38 mold and was running both of them at once, stopping every twenty pours to add lead to the pot. Good times!
I spent yesterday evening cleaning the house. I think the place looks a lot better now, we can even sit down in the living room.
Still waiting on class times for one of my classes.
WX report: 35.8°F, 32% humidity, sunny.
Wednesday, 1-9-08 at 7:24 MST
I received part of my proposal back last night and will make some corrections today. After that, I will probably go and cast some bullets.
Still waiting on class times for one of my classes.
WX report: 30.4°F, 38% humidity, sunny.
Tuesday, 1-8-08 at 9:44 MST
I pulled 39 hours awake, but then went to sleep last night, finally. I got a few things done though. I started working on the modeling stuff for my thesis, I logged all 249 QSOs from my trip in the log book (DX4Win is next, then this website), set up my battery backup and rearranged the office.
Lester is murring happily, he missed us even if he won’t admit it! I need to clean the turtle tank this week.
WX report: 38.5°F, 40% humidity, sunny.
Monday, 1-7-08 at 4:16 MST
We made it home around 2:30 this morning, and by the time I unloaded the car, I decided to just stay up until time for work.
WX report: 42.4°F, 43% humidity, clear.
I wish all of you a happy new year. Rather than do a monthly update, I decided to do a yearly update. I didn’t keep track of everything, so it’s hard to say what I actually did:
Books read: 25
Books of the Bible Read: 60+
Periodicals Read: 57
HF Contacts made: 940
Conferences Attended: 3 (presented at 2)
Farthest Distance Traveled: Beijing, China
Biggest Accomplishment: Catching a tornado on my own
Publications: 1
Trips: Cocoa Beach, FL in January; Pahrump, NV in February; Northern NM in March; Texas Panhandle in April; Beijing, China, and KS, TX, OK storm chasing in May; southern NM, Detroit, Ontario, Ohio, and Ely, NV in September; White Sands and Ft. Wayne, IN in October; TX, OK, AR, TN, VA, MD, PA, WV, OH in December.
New States: NV, MI, OH
New Countries: China, Canada
Now for one of those stupid surveys- I have filled this thing out every year for a few years now, why stop now?
1. What did you do in 2007 that you’d never done before? Left the country
2. Did you keep your new years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year? Kinda sorta
3. Did anyone close to you give birth? Yes
4. Did anyone close to you die? no, thankfully
5. What countries did you visit? USA, China, Canada (Ontario)
6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007? A billion dollars?
7. What date from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? May 11, as that is the day I left for China.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? Publications and conferences and a few awards.
9. What was your biggest failure? not inventing the anal bum cover (SNL reference haha)
10. Did you suffer illness or injury? Got the flu a few times.
11. What was the best thing you bought? RV!!!
12. Whose behavior merited celebration? All of my friends.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? hahah, I could respond, but I won’t.
14. Where did most of your money go? Tuition, rent, utilities, credit cards.
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Chasing, Travel
16. What song will always remind you of 2007? Mos Def – Travelin’ Man
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder? happier.
ii. thinner or fatter? bout the same
iii. richer or poorer? richer, bling bling.
18. What do you wish you’d done more of? Reading
19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Sleeping
20. How will you be spending Christmas? I drove to VA, MD, OH, IL, CO (and everywhere in between)
22. Did you fall in love in 2007? yep
23. How many one-night stands? zero
24. What was your favorite TV program? Boston Legal
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? Um, I don’t hate anyone, but a few more hate me, but whatever.
26. What was the best book you read? The Underboss by Peter Maas
27. What was your greatest musical discovery? Mos Def
28. What did you want and get? Your mom.
30. What was your favorite film of this year? I’m not sure when it came out but The Departed was great.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I turned 26, and we ate at the Roadrunner
32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? What?
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007? Still jeans, t-shirt and flannel, but not so baggy these days.
34. What kept you sane? Reading
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? None.
36. What political issue stirred you the most? I stopped listening.
37. Who did you miss? everyone back east, particularly my family.
38. Who were the best new people you met? I didn’t really meet new people this year.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007: Keep your mouth shut.
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year: Not sure there is one.
Sunday, 1-6-08 at 9:28 MST
Our vacation is almost over, I still can’t believe it.
I filled out my logbook completely. I have a blank one in Socorro, and man it’s a good thing, cause I still have contacts to log. I have made 223 on this trip so far.
WX report: ?deg;F, ?% humidity, partly cloudy.
Sabbath, 1-5-08 at 23:19 MST
Made it to Grand Island, NE last night, and Colorado Springs, CO tonight.
We had dinner with David, Emily and Laurie! I hadn’t seen David and Emily in several years, and it had been over a year since the last time I saw Laurie.
WX report: ?°F, ?% humidity, really windy.
Friday, 1-4-08 at 8:51 CST
I am writing this from Peru, IL, and we hope to make it to at least Kearney, NE tonight. Yesterday, we visited with AnnaMarie and Reid and a puffball cat.
Today, I will probably finish my proposal. I look at it again every few hours and find something else to fix. Maybe I’ll work out all of the bugs?
WX report: ?°F, ?% humidity, sunny with snow on the ground (though the roads are dry).
Thursday, 1-3-08 at 9:07 EST
Yesterday, we had lunch with a few of my girlfriend’s friends, mostly her mom’s friends from college. We also had dinner with her brother, sister in law and nephew.
I will probably finish my proposal this morning and send it in. Ugh.
WX report: ?°F, ?% humidity, sunny with blowing snow.
Wednesday, 1-2-08 at 10:45 EST
Yesterday, we met up with my girlfriend’s aunt, uncle, and cousins. We watched some stuff on the DIY network and some football, and I think everyone had fun except Hawaii, of course. We will be making our rounds later today and visit a few more people in Cleveland.
I will post a yearly summary at some point after I return to New Mexico. I can’t tally all the stuff I normally include from memory, so you’ll just have to wait until I get home.
WX report: ?°F, ?% humidity, sunny with blowing snow.
Tuesday, 1-1-08 at 13:20 EST
Happy New Year!
We have had a good trip so far. Last night, we saw Trans-Siberian Orchestra in Cleveland and it was one of the best shows I’ve ever seen.
WX report: ?°F, ?% humidity, blowing snow.
An Engineer in the World 