þÿ<html> <head> <meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html;charset=iso-8859-1"> <meta name="robots" content="noindex"> <title>Alan and Barbara, 4-11-12</title> </head> <body bgcolor="#ffffff"> <div align="center"> <a href="index.html">Return to Start Page</a> <p><br> <p> <br> <table width="800" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/a01.jpg" width="600"> </td> <td> When Grandpa Allen died, I ended up with his rock saw. I don't really remember the details of how that happened, but since I still have the saw and nobody is threatening me over it, I guess it was legitimate. At any rate, I have long thought I would someday procure pieces to go with the saw, and create a lapidary shop, where I can cut, shape, and polish semi-precious stones. With Barbara s' encouragement, I undertook this somewhat laborious project. The first step was to clean out a corner of the rabbit house (anybody need a cage or two?). Then I hauled in dirt to raise the floor to some semblance of level. When I moved the rock saw, I managed to drop it and broke the pulley. That wasn't hard to replace (after I finally located my gear puller), but then the motor wouldn't work. In fact, four motors wouldn't work. </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <table width="900" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> About that point in it, I questioned the power source, and found it seriously lacking (turning on a newly installed fluorescent light dropped the voltage in the circuit from 118 to 92). I learned long ago that electricity is magic, and after several abortive attempts to understand what was happening, I solved the problem by completely replacing the electrical line (including more trenching [my favorite]). But before arriving at this solution, I had taken the saw motor apart, and encountered trouble in the reassembly process. In desperation I had Brittney take it to an electrical repair shop and asked them to do whatever was needed to make it work. A couple of days later, they decided it was beyond their capacity to repair, and returned it to me, still in pieces. With Mark's help I was finally able to reassembled it, and found it to be fully functional. Go figure...<p> </td> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/a02.jpg" width="600"> </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <p> <br> <table width="800" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/a13.jpg"> </td> <td> I built a table out of lumber scrapes lying around, hunted up a couple of other pieces of lapidary equipment that probably also came from Grandpa, and purchased still another piece. Currently the shop is neither complete nor functional, but I hope to have it working some time in the not too distant future. The big saw works, and Brittney cut up a couple of geodes that came for the Gem and Mineral Show. I cut up a rock that we found when Mark, Karren, Barbara, and I went looking for an old jasper mine south of Patagonia. </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <table width="800" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> Now back to my favorite subject--vehicle repair. One day on the way home from work, I stopped at the post office. The car restarted normally, but died after about 1 second and then played dead. It would crank furiously, but without even hint of a cylinder firing. I towed it home, and was totally unable to reproduce the problem the next morning. I put it back in service, and two days later, it stranded me again, this time in front of the hardware store in San Manuel. Barbara and I towed it home, and permanently parked it, pending repairs. </td> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/a03.jpg"> </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <table width="900" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/a04.jpg"> </td> <td> After pondering for several days, I guessed the problem was the gas pump. Replacements available on the internet ranged from $79 to well over $300, and those available in Tucson clustered around $180, Interestingly, they all had the exact same guarantee. Guess which one I bought... <p>Replacing the pump inside the gas tank was a nightmare that left me sick for two days but, at least to this point, it seems to have solved the problem. Perhaps accidentally, or perhaps as the result of a Freudian slip, I lost the photos of that adventure. </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <P> <p> <br> <P> <table width="600" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> After several years of thinking about it, I accepted an offer from David Ellis to accompany him on an expedition to Mongolia where I will assist in his study of raptors in the area. We will be gone 8 weeks, and if you don't think amassing that much vacation was problematic (given that the most we are allowed to accumulate is 280 hours), you don't understand bureaucracies. But, my persistence paid off, and the vacation is now officially approved. The down side, is that I will be essentially chained to my desk for a couple of months after I return--and I had some fun things planned... (even if AJ doesn't like to straddle a bike). </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <P> <table width="600" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/mmap.jpg"><p> </td> </tr> </table> <br> <table width="600" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> Mongolia is a lens shaped country, about 1725 miles long and 850 miles wide. It is bordered on the North by Russia and on the south by China, and is home to the Gobi Desert (which runs along its southern border) and the Altai Mountains (located in it's western end). Its' latitude varies from about 42 to 52 degrees north, making it about equivalent to the region between Logan, Utah and Saskatoon, Canada (if you care to consult a map). According to one website I visited, summer temperatures range from 60 to 70&deg;F. That sounds just a bit cold to me... <p> In the unlikely event that anyone needs to know, my itinerary is listed below. Crossing the international date line makes for some unusual departure time/arrival time pairs. I suspect (assuming that I survive this adventure) I will have a few stories to tell at the conclusion of the trip. </td> </tr> </table> <br> <p> <table width="610" border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <TD width="25%">Flight Number </td> <TD width="37%">Departs </td> <TD>Arrives </td> </tr> <tr> <TD>US Airways, Flight 34 </td> <TD>Phoenix, Arizona<br>Tuesday May 22, 2012 at 6:45 pm <br>Flight Duration 1 hr, 24 min </td> <TD>Los Angeles, California <br> Tuesday May 22, 2012 at 8:09 pm<br>5 hr 31 min layover </td> </tr> <tr> <TD>Air China Flight 984 </td> <TD>Los Angeles, California <br> Wednesday May 23, 2012 at 1:40 am <br>Flight Duration 12 hr, 40 min </td> <TD>Beijing, China <br> Thursday May 24, 2012 at 5:20 am <br> 3 hr 15 min layover </td> </tr> <tr> <TD>Air China Flight 901 </td> <TD>Beijing, China <br> Thursday May 24, 2012 at 8:35 am <br>Flight Duration 3 hr, 15 min </td> <TD>Ulan Bator (Ulaanbaator), Mongolia <br> Thursday May 24, 2012 at 10: am </td> </tr> </table><br> <table width="610" border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <TD width="25%">Air China Flight 902 </td> <TD width="37%">Ulan Bator (Ulaanbaator), Mongolia<br> Thursday July 12, 2012 at 2 pm <br> Flight Duration 2 hr, 10 min </td> <TD>Beijing, China <br> Thursday July 12, 2012 1150 am <br> 7 hr, 0 min layover </td> </tr> <tr> <TD>Air China Flight 983 </td> <TD>Beijing, China <br> Thursday July 12, 2012 at 9:00 pm <br>Flight Duration 12 hr, 0 min </td> <TD>Los Angeles, California <br> July 12, 2012 at 6 pm <br> 3 hr 35 min layover </td> </tr> <tr> <TD>US Airways Flight 147 </td> <TD>Los Angeles, California <br> July 12, 2012 at 9:35 pm <br>Flight Duration 1 hr, 18 min </td> <TD>Phoenix, Arizona<br>Thursday July 12, 2012 at 10:53 pm </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br><p> <table width="900" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td>Now back to my favorite subjecr--CAR REPAIRS!!! <p>Mark came to visit, and we were going to visit the fossil beds near Willcox (the ones described in the book, Road Side Geology of Arizona). Near Home Depot, Mark noticed a whiff of white smoke. As we traveled, the whiffs became more numerous. We stopped at the Walmart on McGee, and found a steady supply of smoke that appeared to emanate from the passengers side of the transverse engine. After it cooled, we refilled the radiator, and headed home. Just the other side of Catalina, we had to stop again, and when we refilled the radiator (after allowing the engine to cool), water ran out as fast as we poured it in. We called Barbara and asked her to bring the tow package. Further investigation revealed a ruptured water line (one that was replaced last December). Why a line that new would rupture is not immediately evident (unless it has something to do with Nathen's economy coolant). When Barbara arrived to rescue us, we drove back to an auto parts store and bought a foot of hose (plus a couple of tools, since mine were all sitting on the job site in the rabbit house). </td> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/a14.jpg"> </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <p> <br> <table width="800" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/a05.jpg"> </td> <td> Ten minutes later we were back on the road again, albeit tentatively since I couldn't believe that a ruptured hose caused all the observed symptoms. Ten days later, everything is still functional (with the exception of a rapid rrr rrr rrr noise when I turn to the left at highway speed [failing wheel bearing?]). Stay tuned for late breaking news... </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <table width="900" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> <p> Barbara has been visiting second hand stores, and Easter found her bedecked in finery. </td> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/a06.jpg"> </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <p> <br> <table width="800" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/a07.jpg"> </td> <td> The next day, Mark and I climbed El Capitan and looked at the fossils (and helicopters) there. </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <table width="900" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> I am developing an appreciation for the science of geology, and wish now that I had taken a few classes on that subject. </td> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/a08.jpg"> </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <p> <br> <table width="800" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/a09.jpg"> </td> <td> Looking at the exposed strata of road cuts, plus pondering the chemical makeup of common gemstones has opened a whole new area of thought for me. That is kind of exciting (almost as exciting as it was for Mark getting his arm up close and personal with that cactus). </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <table width="900" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> As best as I can tell, this is the stalk of a crinoid. These plants have been around almost forever, and a few species still survive today. </td> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/a10.jpg"> </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <p> <br> <table width="800" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/a11.jpg"> </td> <td> All told, it was a fun little trip. </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <table width="900" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> This is an un-retouched photograph of a catalog I received in the mail. Not more than a third of the publication arrived. I'll have to get AJ to explain how the post office could do such a thing. </td> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/a12.jpg"> </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <p> <br> <table width="800" border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr> <td> <img src="alh4-11-12/a15.jpg"> </td> <td> Mark's hat is so old it makes mine look good, and that is hard to do. </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br> <p><table width="400"> <tr> <td> As a footnote, I am no longer the Ward Clerk of the San Manuel First Ward. They released me, then called me to be the Young Mens President. That's what I call jumping out of the frying pan into the fire... <p> If you are interested, the adventures of this group are chronicled <a href="http://www.grandmasweb.com/ym">here</a>. </td> </tr> </table> <p> <br><p> <a href="index.html">Return to Start Page</a> <p> </div> </body> </html>