Maintenance Day Frustration

 

Song:  Fire On High (shortened version)

Group:  ELO

Like all men...

we like to fix things...

but we get very frustrated when we see how a failure of proper engineering

had led to an unnecessary operational failure in the first place.

No...

it doesn't take an engineering degree to see how something could have been

so easily done right in the first place...to never suffer a failure...

had they not skimped to save money...

or even worse...

to ensure a replacement would need to be bought in the future.

I opened up the doors underneath the kitchen sinks to retrieve 

more dishwashing liquid so I could fill the sink side dispenser.

It was then I had noticed that a slow drip was traveling down the sink pipes.

While the previous owners had the foresight to have placed down waterproof

contact paper on the flooring of the cabinet...

I still knew I had to fix the problem immediately.

I traced the leak to the upper most compression nut connecting the sink to the first pipe.

I disassembled the pipe above and below...took it apart and looked it over...

and realized the metal compression nut had actually failed.

The lower flange had broken off.

This took any compression off the seal...

which then allowed water to drip down the pipe.

I went to the hardware store in the nearest town with the disassembled pipe

and all of the fittings to ensure I got the same type and size...

and I picked up seals...

another compression nut...

and pipe teflon tape.

Bandi loved the drive...

so...

it was all good.

However...

once I got back and began replacing the seals and the compression nut...

I noticed how if the sides of the compression nut were made twice as high...

a second seal...

a tapered silicone seal which provided lateral...

as well as vertical compression when tightened...

would have made a foolproof seal.

I tried emplacing one of the tapered seals...

but as the side of the compression nut was too low...

the nut wouldn't screw on.

And...

of course...

had the lower metal flange been made more sturdily...

it would not have failed in the first place.

Something so important as water pipes should never fail...ever.

Anyway...

I had to place a larger amount of pipe thread tape to act...

not only as a thread seal...

but to buttress up against the compression nut seal...

to then act as what a tapered silicone seal would have done...

had they simply made the threaded sides of the compression nut twice as high.

I had also placed a small bucket underneath the pipes to catch any future leaks...

should any more develop from another joint.

I cleaned up underneath the sink...

and then swept up the whole floor.

Bandi and I relaxed on our bed for a few minutes afterwards.

She loves to cuddle up to me for a while.

She then switches to guard mode...

but from the comfort of the bed.

As the day was nice...

I decided to take to task...

what I thought would only be a short and easy job of draining the Jacuzzi

before below freezing weather visited.

I had previously bought a shop vac to drain the internal pipes of the Jacuzzi 

...after draining the tub portion.

I placed everything out...

all ready to begin...

when I ran into another frustratingly poorly engineered...

absolutely senseless situation.

The valve which controls the draining of the tub

had been made to drain the tub at such a slow rate...

that it would have taken more than a full day just for that portion.

I gave a mighty tiger roar in frustration...

as I know how easy it would have been ensuring a valve that opened far enough

to allow the water to flow at a rate which could empty the tub

in an hour or less could, and should, have been installed

(and yes...all of we men get frustrated at stupidly designed products...

one that could have so easily been avoided by just having given ONE operational run through).

I not only ensured I had, in fact, opened it fully...

I then looked up draining one on YouTube.

Yes...

it is a design flaw...

one that should have easily been foreseen.

I will also throw away the stupidly cheap hose I had first bought.

It is prone to kinks...

and having to unravel 100 feet of it and then unkink it is just something I will

never do again

(And, yes...another tiger roar soon followed...

having to partake in this frustrating task).

I had earlier bought an expandable non-kink hose...

the type of which I will always buy in the future (I show it in the last picture).

I could have just let it slowly drained...

but as I will be doing this many times in the future...

I decided to get the right equipment for the job...

to prevent needless future frustration.

I then got online and ordered a pool siphon hose (arriving early next week)...

which will bypass the stupidly slow release valve of the tub.

And so...

I will have to leave the shop vac nearby...

until I receive the pool siphon hose...

to finally empty the tub.

This expanding non-kink hose is the type to get.

This is for the front of the house...

and I will be getting another one for the rear at a later time.

-----------

I had wanted to complete multiple tasks today...

but, I will just have to put off some until the needed equipment arrives.

There is still danger of summer rains...

and so...

I cannot work on the decks until I can be assured of multiple days of sunny weather.

And so...

for now...

I will just make some more yogurt...

and then, later in the evening...

I will probably weed another bag full.

And if the sky is right...

Bandi and I will take a sunset trike ride...

after which I will stretch...

go in the sauna...

and then take a hot shower.

As for tonight...

after eating some delicious Pad Thai...

I will probably just practice music.

I should be a lot more mellow by then  :)

Music Day

 

Song:  Oil Of Angels

Group:  Cocteau Twins

For my main meal of the day...

in the early afternoon...

I, again, made Pad Thai.

However...

this time I used a different peanut sauce...

and it made a world of difference.

I really liked my Pad Thai before...

but I now absolutely love it.

When I cook Pad Thai...

I make a whole box (5 servings) at a time.

It tastes just as delicious warmed up...

even days later.

To make a box full at a time...

just steam at least 2 lbs of chicken...

and defrost 2 lbs of shrimp to add to the Pad Thai.

This peanut sauce is excellent.

The five servings almost fills a full 14" Wok.

After plating the Pad Thai...

I just drizzled on some of the peanut sauce

(it was so superior to the old sauce that I threw the other one away).

OMG...

it added a delightfully smooth and creamy texture and flavor.

Most restaurants don't add peanut sauce...

and it really shows in the lack of flavor.

I had been to one excellent Thai restaurant before...

and I could taste some peanut sauce in their Pad Thai.

This adds such a delicious dimension to this dish.

Plus...

in each serving (I get about 3-4 servings from each box)...

there is about a pound of chicken and shrimp...

so each meal is substantial...

and healthful...

as well as being madly addictive.

I just had such a good meal that I had to reemphasize the greatness of this Pad Thai...

with this peanut sauce.

(In some of my earlier articles I break down how to make this Pad Thai).

Whenever I have a delicious meal...

I get into an especially good mood.

Even though it was a beautiful day out...

I was in a particularly musical mood.

And so...

for the rest of the day...

I am going to work on more of my next cover song.

I hope to record the first layer soon.

I can hear the other instruments I will be adding to the song...

so, it will be just a matter of playing the melodies and rhythms

 I can hear from the maestro of the mind.

After eating my fill...

I put the rest of the Pad Thai in the fridge.

I can get 2-3 more meals out of this.

For men especially...

we need to eat more meat than do women.

This meal will give you plenty of meat...

and it will deeply satisfy you all day long.

I am now up in my loft...

and where I will remain for the rest of the day...

and into the night.

I have the 3rd deck door open...

as well as some windows upstairs and down...

to allow the cool mountain breeze to flow throughout.

And...

once again...

I know I am not particularly musically talented...

but, for me...

that is not the point.

I am chasing my passions in life...

I am completing my bucket list.

For the other senior citizens out there...

we are all going to die.

Besides living our lives as healthfully as possible...

we cannot control how long we live.

However...

we can control how well we live our lives.

Eat delicious food everyday.

If you aren't loving your meals...

where it makes you so happy inside...

learn to make meals from other lands.

There is a whole world of spices and flavors to experience.

Keep making progress in your passions in life.

If you aren't looking forwards to the future...

you have not properly placed carrots in your life.

--------------

I cannot stress this enough...

if you are not feeling a deep serenity and happiness everyday...

if looking at the clouds...

the sunrises and sunsets...

the night sky...

feeling the wind upon your face...

eating delicious foods...

listening to soul stirring music...

immersing yourself in all of the great simple pleasures of life...

do not give rise to your creative passions...

do not fill you with excitement and hope...

you are doing something wrong.

Just knowing you should always be deeply happy inside...

is the first step.

Spend some time in solitude...

think deeply...

write out your bucket list

(things you have always wanted to do).

This sets a direction in your life.

Once you have that direction...

live life by the basic four:

1)  Eat delicious and nutritious food.

2) Exercise regularly

3)  Get Deep and Restorative Sleep

4)  Pursue Your Creative Passions

Do these...

and all of the great simple pleasures of life

manifest themselves throughout everyday.

Life is simply too short to do otherwise.

The subconscious, among other things...

 is what provides us motivation.

We each may be thought of as a gem.

As a beautifully cut gem has many facets...

so has our personality.

The subconscious automatically shifts from facet to facet

depending on our environment and situation.

One very important facet you should never suppress...

outside of certain social situations...

is that of your inner child.

It is he (or she)...

who revels in novelty...

of beauty and wonder at everything...

who has insatiable curiosity...

and who is inherently happy.

Other important facets include:

 The Stoic (Philosopher/Psychologist)...

The Intellectual...

The Creative Artist...

The Warrior...

and...

The Dog (unfettered love and loyalty).

To think that we are just one person

is to ignore the potential to live life fully.

If you will notice...

none of the facets is negative.

If you but realize one thing in life...

your subconscious will guide you:

We are the masters of the self...

and so...

the masters of our destiny.

----------

Look at the pure joy in the expressions of children and dogs.

Their pure heartedness will remind you of your own inner child.

----------

Read and incorporate the teachings of the great philosophers.

The great philosophers had lived lives so incredibly difficult...

and yet...

had mastered themselves to go on to teach others.

Epictetus was a very notable example.

He was a slave...

and yet...

was later able to secure his freedom to go on to open his own school of philosophy...

and who's great realizations in life greatly influenced other great philosophers.

He had molded his way of life out of chaos...

and in what would have driven so many others to despair.

His was a way of life which was borne not of comfort...

but of defeating himself under arduous conditions.

So many of the modern day armchair psychologists and philosophers

think backwards.

They create these zany hypotheses and then try to influence others

of their validity because they hadn't realized a way of life

by having lived it and conquered difficult situations themselves...

and so...

they blame all others of not doing it right...

because that is how they think it should be...

without having taken into account actual human behavior

(Marxism...made by two armchair Philosophers...

and with Karl Marx being a professional parasite...

just one of many idiotic beliefs).

----------

Learn from the learned...

and...

know yourself...

and you shall know the world.

These two thoughts alone should tell you everything you should know

in your screening of information.

Look at how someone has lived his or her life...

not by what they merely say.

How do you know?

Look at their:

 Actions in the face of duty...

Inactions in the face of temptation...

and their Reactions to people at a disadvantage to them.

But...

for a quick measurement...

look at how serene and deeply happy they are.

And know the means and methods of deception.

A lack of emotion is indicative of someone who is guarding.

Phony expressions are out of synch with the quantity and quality

of the situation...especially in the eyes.

----------

Having a creative outlet is how we may defeat death.

It allows us to live for the future...

knowing that it will eventually outlive you.

It is to be happy in the now...

with the knowledge that someone in the future will be happy

because of your actions.

It also connects people at their deepest level.

It gives meaning to life.

-----------

Learn to cut out negative emotions...

by merely concentrating on the positive.

Notice I didn't say...

by not doing or thinking of the negative.

By not trying to do something is to think about it (the negative)...

and so...

reinforcing the negative.

----------

And...

most of all...

know that once true love touches your heart...

it will change your life...

forever.

People falsely think that a negative event in life...

permanently scars the heart.

NO...

our minds are very good at employing selective memory...

so long as you allow a positive event in life to overwrite the negative...

whether it be an actual event...

or a projected one.

To fall hopelessly in love...

is to erase all the negative...

to forever keep all the negative from ever breaching your armor...

as you will have the realization that even having lost the object of your love...

and that it will always yours to experience once again...

should you but allow yourself to love once more.

But...

once again...

you first must experience it.

But the beauty of love is that you need not experience it first hand.

By reading of great loves...

or through other mediums of love (dramas)...

if the writers are good enough...

 will have you falling in love with a certain character.

You will then fall in love with your imaginary perfect person...

and when you see the person who resembles that imaginary person in real life...

that is when love at first sight becomes a reality.

Even should their heart not be available to you...

you will forever have the unconquerable hope that true love does exist.

That is when life takes on a crystal clear quality...

and you will have the inner knowledge of true and deep happiness...

since you had experienced it.

This is the power of the facets of:

The Child...

and...

The Dog.

Without them...

the only enjoyment in life comes from evil or purely selfish intent.

Hedonism or power lusting is the only outlet for such people.

----------------

Pretty soon...

I will be taking Bandi out to differing parts of Colorado

to see the Autumn colors (besides near home).

I, will, of course...

be taking lots of photos.

----------------

Okay...

enough for now.

Back to my music.

For the cover song...

I will be using the classical guitar on one track...

and all on separate tracks...

I will be using the 12 string guitar...

the Bass Flute...

the Bass Guitar...

and multiple instruments on my Max - 10 music arranger keyboard.

This particular song will take me some time to complete...

as, again...

I am not particularly musically talented.

It is just one of my creative passions.

But...

it is one of the things in life that gives it so much depth and beauty.

Batch Cooking - Thai Green Curry

 

Song:  Drops Of Jupiter

Group:  Train

I had been waiting for my Thai Green Curry paste so I could make green curry.

I received notice that I had packages waiting for me at the post office...

so, the day after the holiday...

I drove to the post office in town.

I picked up my packages...

and then drove back home...

fully expecting to make Thai Green Curry later that same day.

I got home and opened up the packages.

Although I had received one other item I needed for the curry...

the package of the green curry paste was not in this delivery.

I just love Pad Thai.

I will always be sure to have plenty of the noodles and sauce.

I had also bought 10 more pounds of powdered milk for my homemade yogurt.

I looked outside...

and seeing it was a nice day...

I decided I would drive to my favorite Asian Market in Colorado Springs

to get the Thai Green Curry paste.

It was a nice drive there and back.

Finally...

I bought a large stock of the curry paste...

and I stocked up on peanut sauce as well

(for the Pad Thai).

I was tired after my shopping spree...

so, after putting everything away...

I went to sleep early.

On the afternoon of the following day...

I would start cooking a large batch of Thai Green Curry.

I would end up using 2 lbs of coconut milk powder for the curry.

I first filled the 12 quart stock pot about half way with water...

and I began soaking a couple of handfuls of Shiitake mushrooms

in it as I had it on low simmer to soften them.

In the meantime...

I laid out the implements I would be using for the mushrooms.

After half an hour...

the mushrooms were soft.

I would just use the mushroom infused water to cook with.

I sliced up the mushrooms.

I then added the coconut milk powder.

As I added each ingredient...

I sampled it often to get the right taste.

I always use the two spoon tasting method.

I then added sweetened condensed milk to the coconut milk 

to give it just the right amount of sweetness.

I then added the green curry paste...

a little at a time.

You must be careful when adding this...

as it is very easy to get the curry too spicy.

I just added some...

stirred it well...

and tasted...

over and over again.

I had ended up using all of this tub.

As most of the work was done once I had the curry sauce done...

I started the rice cooker.

I kept the heat on low simmer...

as I would be adding the chicken and shrimp.

I had over 6 lbs of steamed chicken from the other day.

I would end up using about four lbs of it.

The rest of it will be made into Pad Thai on the morrow.

I then added the mushrooms and two batches of shrimp.

I put the first batch of shrimp in (two lbs)...

to be sure it would fit inside the stockpot.

Seeing I still had enough room...

I added another two lbs of shrimp.

I fluffed the rice.

After adding in the final two pounds of shrimp...

I had just enough room to stir everything.

I then cut up some tofu to add to the dish once I put some curry in my bowl.

It was tasty and hearty.

This will be perfect to eat on cool autumn and cold winter days.

I turned off the heat...

and staged the freezer containers for filling once the curry cooled enough

(about three hours later).

I filled 15 containers...

one of which I put in the fridge...

and the rest I put into the deep freeze.

I have Japanese Curry on the left...

and Thai Green Curry on the right.

After a few minutes of cleanup...

I was done for the night.

------------

Tomorrow...

I am going to make Pad Thai.

I have three different peanut sauces to try over the Pad Thai.

Once I find my favorite peanut sauce...

I am going to ensure I stock up on plenty of it.

Right now...

I just can't get enough of Pad Thai.

I just love that dish.

------------

In a couple of days...

I am going to finish up the opened tofu

by making Kimchi Stew.

This is another perfect dish for cooler weather.

------------

Now that I know how to make my two favorite Thai dishes...

I am going to learn how to make some other country's dishes as well.

I just love food.

------------

I also want to get a large meat smoker some time in the future.

Right on the second deck...

there is a covered outdoor electrical outlet.

It will be the perfect place to smoke meats.