tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37610097909029984572024-03-13T12:59:52.348-07:00Psionic BlueMusings on living in the <a href="http://sugarhouseutah.com/">SugHo</a>Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.comBlogger30125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-4634953859585292722011-03-15T14:33:00.000-07:002011-03-15T14:33:48.766-07:00Easy access tub!I saw this at the home and garden show from http://www.onedaybathutah.com . I really think this would be awesome for Dad:<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/5530429746/" title="Sophia tub by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5179/5530429746_d933ae3878.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Sophia tub" /></a><br />
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I guess the downside would be you can't open the door until the water drains. But easy bathing! Thanks to Sophia for her fine modeling of the tub. Yeah, and I know I'm a terrible blogger, don't mention it. ;-)<br />
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SteveSharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-64590037012139083092011-01-17T19:12:00.000-08:002011-01-17T19:12:30.074-08:00Funny video of Sophia from March 2009I can't believe how much she's grown. I dumped all the videos off the Flip, and will start posting one of these about three times a week, discipline willing. She's a cutie pie for sure.<br />
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<iframe title="YouTube video player" class="youtube-player" type="text/html" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/InNbDA8mP5A" frameborder="0"></iframe>Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-16753360923971052022010-11-24T16:26:00.000-08:002010-11-24T16:26:12.315-08:00NawlinsI went for a week this November, as I do every year, to the Supercomputing Conference. This year it was held in New Orleans. The weather down there was perfect, and for non-vegetarian folks the food was great too. We went down and visited the 9th ward was heavily damaged when the levees failed during Hurricane Katrina. I have a ton of pix from there, but I'll just post a few stand outs. New:<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/5205006761/" title="CoolHouse by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4130/5205006761_de29a451aa.jpg" width="500" height="252" alt="CoolHouse" /></a><br />
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Old:<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/5205011301/" title="Sad Duplex by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5210/5205011301_c1f77e0f99.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Sad Duplex" /></a><br />
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I saw these birds there and they were just mesmerizing:<br />
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We stayed in the warehouse district which has lots of museums and Art studios. Here's a cool piece I found:<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/5205624236/" title="Glass Art by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5210/5205624236_1be496cca2.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Glass Art" /></a><br />
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A different view<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/5205624268/" title="Glass Art by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5047/5205624268_17cc3fd6d0.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Glass Art" /></a><br />
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I think Sophia would have really liked the Children's Museum:<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/5205628180/" title="Mr. Skeleton by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5083/5205628180_386aa6005e.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Mr. Skeleton" /></a><br />
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Here I am<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/5205034611/" title="Me! by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5164/5205034611_e2a7258c22.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Me!" /></a><br />
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And then I came home and got Sophia a new fish for her birthday!<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/5205039007/" title="Sophia & Mr. Betta Mk. II by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4084/5205039007_269926cc88.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Sophia & Mr. Betta Mk. II" /></a><br />
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The end.Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-8014033081023277262010-09-03T14:58:00.001-07:002010-09-03T14:58:14.930-07:00Baby girl in the sand at Red Butte Garden.<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4936115034/" title="Baby girl Buried by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4142/4936115034_c2ccf50a10.jpg" width="500" height="500" alt="Baby girl Buried" /></a><br />
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I just thought it was a great picSharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-78538504280696735692010-08-06T15:33:00.000-07:002010-08-06T15:33:10.997-07:00Yellowstone 2010We sucked it up and went to Yellowstone to camp in July. We drove up Tuesday evening and stayed the night in Rexburg after a 4 hour drive. We convoyed with the Neuberts, a lovely family who have a little girl, Clara, in Sophia's PreSchool class. I got up at 6am to hit the park hard and secure a campsite since we'd been unable to make advance reservations, this being the busy season. But with two 3 year olds to contend with, we didn't even get into the cars until 8:15 am. The road construction was heavy into West Yellowstone and we were just barely getting into the park by 10am. Since the guidebook says all the campsites are full by 11 we were kind of SOL. So we drove around all day Wednesday trying to find accomodations. We went up to Mammoth and stopped there,<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857471781/" title="IMG_0314 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4077/4857471781_743e051b75.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0314" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857471947/" title="IMG_0315 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4120/4857471947_ede4136253.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0315" /></a><br />
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and then went out to Slough Creek and had a little picnic, and then down to Tower Junction were we gassed up and got some snacks before stopping at Roosevelt Ranch and making some calls at the pay phones to see if we could get reservations any where. Yellowstone has ZERO reception for AT&T users, and a little for those with Verizon, which is a chancy proposition. Basically the only place you can hope to make calls is in and around Old Faithful. After much tooth gnashing we decided to stay outside the park in Soda Butte campsite, beyond the North-East entrance. So we made the long drive out there... and it was closed. Every campsite in Wyoming and Montana was closed because they'd had a triple bear "incident". Two folks injured, one dead. So we asked the Ranger for recommendations and they said to stay at Hoosiers, which we did. A little pricey at $145, which I guess was the "Every Campsite is closed" rate, but clean and comfortable. <br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858070504/" title="IMG_0327 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4102/4858070504_9d3e7cdc01.jpg" width="500" height="500" alt="IMG_0327" /></a><br />
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Here's the office<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857472331/" title="IMG_0322 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4102/4857472331_960d3e70d0.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0322" /></a><br />
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Bubbles!<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857473301/" title="IMG_0331 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4143/4857473301_6eb1451a7a.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0331" /></a><br />
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Here we are making Marshmallows on my nostalgia-purchased Dual Fuel Stove:<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858092996/" title="IMG_0335 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4077/4858092996_b5bfe856d3.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0335" /></a><br />
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We went and got pricey pizza at the bar across the street, and then went off to read bed time stories and go to sleep. Rob and I got up at 5:30am the next morning and drove back in to the park to secure ourselves a site at the "first come first served" campsite at Norris. Here's the massive Bison herd we say just after 6am coming into eastern Yellowstone:<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857473809/" title="IMG_0340 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4079/4857473809_34c22e0f3c.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0340" /></a><br />
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Baby Bison-<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858093498/" title="IMG_0343 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4117/4858093498_6fd0811a6c.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0343" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858093818/" title="IMG_0346 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4118/4858093818_d37616b108.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0346" /></a><br />
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I like this one's beard<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858094172/" title="IMG_0348 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4118/4858094172_7321291bfb.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0348" /></a><br />
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Lots of fog still in the valley still at 6:30 am, just past Tower Falls:<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858094240/" title="IMG_0349 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4121/4858094240_93576e8331.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0349" /></a><br />
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It was so foggy we had trouble reading road signs<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857475083/" title="IMG_0351 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4137/4857475083_9fa08f61f7.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0351" /></a><br />
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Here we are approaching Mammoth Hot Springs after securing our campsite and driving back out to get everyone.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857475467/" title="IMG_0357 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4101/4857475467_2d979e2dc4.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0357" /></a><br />
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What everyone takes a picture of:<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858095580/" title="IMG_0365 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4094/4858095580_6f58de4d96.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0365" /></a><br />
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The family unit<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857476673/" title="IMG_0371 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4135/4857476673_2262232720.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0371" /></a><br />
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Hot day<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858096614/" title="IMG_0376 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4140/4858096614_872a9757a6.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0376" /></a><br />
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I'm the Queen of Mammoth Hill!<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857478169/" title="IMG_0386 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4117/4857478169_378e51a8db.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0386" /></a><br />
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Sleeping Monster cannot stop us from enjoy the Norris Geyser Basin!<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858099290/" title="IMG_0402 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4134/4858099290_a76de74bdf.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0402" /></a><br />
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Blorble Blorble!<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857479915/" title="IMG_0404 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4117/4857479915_bf47eeaa47.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0404" /></a><br />
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KerSplash!<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858099732/" title="IMG_0407 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4139/4858099732_0bfe8676e1.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0407" /></a><br />
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Finally awake, with Clara<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858100616/" title="IMG_0418 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4095/4858100616_aa87e6b63c.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0418" /></a><br />
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We barely caught this geyser erupting in the Fire Hole area<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857481751/" title="IMG_0427 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4142/4857481751_040e8aa5a6.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0427" /></a><br />
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Close up, after all the excitement<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857481905/" title="IMG_0428 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4082/4857481905_1d23434e71.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0428" /></a><br />
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Yellowstone Post Office<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858101730/" title="IMG_0429 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4114/4858101730_ee9376a912.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0429" /></a><br />
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Sleepy Sophia in front of the new yet-to-be-completed Visitor Center<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857482483/" title="IMG_0433 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4120/4857482483_725f0e14bc.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0433" /></a><br />
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Cute girls at the Old Faithful lodge<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858102450/" title="IMG_0436 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4134/4858102450_620e58024b.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0436" /></a><br />
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I can stand on my own Momma!<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857483103/" title="IMG_0442 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4116/4857483103_2178d3c24e.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0442" /></a><br />
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Old Faithful Erupting:<br />
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Then we drove out to Yellowstone Lake. Yellowstone Lake is the largest freshwater lake above 7,000 feet in North America. In winter, ice nearly 3 feet thick covers much of the lake, except where shallow water covers hot springs. The lake freezes over by early December and can remain frozen until late May or early June. The water, even at the height of summer is rarely over 40 degrees, which explains why we didn't say any water skiers.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857484259/" title="IMG_0454 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4140/4857484259_6f007241ab.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0454" /></a><br />
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Here we are at Bridge Bay<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857484561/" title="IMG_0456 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4099/4857484561_452223b9ce.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0456" /></a><br />
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Finally we stopped at the waterfalls near Canyon Village campsite<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858086682/" title="IMG_0468 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4093/4858086682_1370b554b1.jpg" width="500" height="500" alt="IMG_0468" /></a><br />
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Then took the hike down down down to the big waterfall on Uncle Tom's Trail<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857485981/" title="IMG_0476 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4140/4857485981_00f99f9662.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="IMG_0476" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858105882/" title="IMG_0477 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4079/4858105882_085c2852ab.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="IMG_0477" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858106014/" title="IMG_0478 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4120/4858106014_84f90dec9a.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="IMG_0478" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4858106378/" title="IMG_0481 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4096/4858106378_a38756ecf1.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0481" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857487277/" title="IMG_0485 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4076/4857487277_855e034dc7.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0485" /></a><br />
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It was so cold the night before that I wore my flannel lined pants to go hiking in. Wrong decision<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857487701/" title="IMG_0489 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4135/4857487701_35dd03125b.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0489" /></a><br />
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The girls at the camp site with Clara's dolls<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857488109/" title="IMG_0491 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4077/4857488109_cdd3f5d4d3.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0491" /></a><br />
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Night #3 was much less chilly than night #2, so the Sophia and Mommy slept good<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857488767/" title="IMG_0500 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4120/4857488767_b786824b51.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0500" /></a><br />
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We had to sit and wait for them to open the road between Norris and Madison at 8am, so Abbey and Sophia got out to look at the long line of cars<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4857489001/" title="IMG_0502 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4135/4857489001_ed9eda005b.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="IMG_0502" /></a><br />
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And then we drove back!Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-86305607665901970312010-07-20T12:00:00.000-07:002010-07-20T12:00:48.660-07:00Sophia's 2010 School PicturesHere's her school photos<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4812560133/" title="Sophia-02 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4123/4812560133_0c486b1b08.jpg" width="335" height="500" alt="Sophia-02" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4813184436/" title="Sophia-12 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4134/4813184436_1ce2034168.jpg" width="335" height="500" alt="Sophia-12" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4813184390/" title="Sophia-11 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4093/4813184390_1f0f45189c.jpg" width="332" height="500" alt="Sophia-11" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4813184368/" title="Sophia-10 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4093/4813184368_4d8d520db0.jpg" width="337" height="500" alt="Sophia-10" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4812560011/" title="Sophia-09 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4077/4812560011_122185b458.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="Sophia-09" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4812559995/" title="Sophia-08 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4138/4812559995_89b3f45345.jpg" width="336" height="500" alt="Sophia-08" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4813184292/" title="Sophia-07 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4122/4813184292_354f512b6b.jpg" width="334" height="500" alt="Sophia-07" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4812559935/" title="Sophia-06 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4120/4812559935_19aa04bcd9.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="Sophia-06" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4812559897/" title="Sophia-05 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4102/4812559897_ff8defe5b4.jpg" width="332" height="500" alt="Sophia-05" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4813184214/" title="Sophia-04 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4121/4813184214_62604b5622.jpg" width="334" height="500" alt="Sophia-04" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4812559829/" title="Sophia-03 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4140/4812559829_48c05a304b.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="Sophia-03" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4812559795/" title="Sophia-01 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4136/4812559795_83c390d491.jpg" width="336" height="500" alt="Sophia-01" /></a>Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-92162899243240903052010-06-15T20:17:00.000-07:002010-06-15T20:17:38.894-07:00Laundry Counter TopMost of the comments I have are on the Flickr pages for the photos.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4694540573/" title="Securing the support in brick by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1306/4694540573_2016cc52a9.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Securing the support in brick" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4695175488/" title="Securing the support into Plaster by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4051/4695175488_08e4993ec3.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Securing the support into Plaster" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4694541147/" title="Done! View 2 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4019/4694541147_d3a0afae4c.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Done! View 2" /></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4695175994/" title="Done! View 1 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4028/4695175994_790434f7aa.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Done! View 1" /></a><br />
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The lathe and plaster patching is the thing that irks me most about this project.<br />
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SharpieSharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-37565298726189339302010-05-04T20:06:00.000-07:002010-05-04T20:06:25.867-07:00Rough IdleSo my Truck has been running poorly the last few weeks and I've been working on it to get it running well again. So far I've done the full service Oil change, new filters (gas, oil, air), new PCV valve, new Iridium spark plugs. That improved things, but the Idle was still rough, so it was time to clean the throttle body. Here's what it looked like before I started on it:<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4579757043/" title="Before by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4008/4579757043_6176f278fd.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Before" /></a><br />
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I used the CRC throttle body cleaner, and that work pretty well. I should have done this when I changed the spark plugs, but hadn't really read up on the process. Turns out to be pretty simple and straight forward. Just take off the intake sleeve and clean 'er out. Here she is all clean:<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4580389688/" title="After by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4014/4580389688_9ac62fdb5e.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="After" /></a> <br />
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I also cleaned my MAF sensor while I was at it. The truck runs a lot better now. Now I just have the big water pump, new belts, new timing belt, new coolant, and new oil in my pumpkins 90K service to do. Ohhh, Matty...Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-17069080516894380902010-04-28T12:35:00.000-07:002010-04-29T09:38:43.399-07:00Park VisitHere's when Sophia and I went to the park. Some video to show you how wild she is, and the lurching I had from my Sprained Ankle. But first, Baby Ducks!<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4560743825/" title="Baby ducks! by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2612/4560743825_b9222f066b.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Baby ducks!" /></a><br />
Here she is sneaking up on the ducks.<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4560804115/" title="Sneaky Sophia by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4007/4560804115_9b031239a2.jpg" width="500" height="310" alt="Sneaky Sophia" /></a><br />
Playing on the choo choo train slide<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4561373066/" title="Precarious passage by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3130/4561373066_da284c1a3b.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Precarious passage" /></a><br />
And going down the slide<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4561373988/" title="Wheee! by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3372/4561373988_3b6027e96c.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Wheee!" /></a><br />
I think Sophia and I will have to learn to hable espanol if we are going to want to talk to anyone at the park. Here's video of her running non stop.<br />
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My allergies were so bad when I went to watch Dayne's baptism that I went to the Dr. the next day and got a prescription for Flonase, an inhaled steroid. It's been working pretty darn good - all I take is that and Zyrtec now and I'm good all day. No more psuedoephedrine required. <br />
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Abbey ran the Half-Marathon this month, the second one she's done so far. She's gonna need a whole new wardrobe now that she's getting so skinny.Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-57188593936756139862010-04-28T12:08:00.000-07:002010-04-28T12:08:01.940-07:00Cute tree house we saw out Biking<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_p6AULv_Cw9Y/S9iFpueztcI/AAAAAAAABR4/_c6r-jbR3Tw/s1600/photo-790404.jpg"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_p6AULv_Cw9Y/S9iFpueztcI/AAAAAAAABR4/_c6r-jbR3Tw/s320/photo-790404.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5465265099712476610" /></a></p>We saw this on 800 e. Sophia was already passed out in the trailer of <br />
course.Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-69972111014607131752009-12-17T18:27:00.001-08:002009-12-17T18:27:23.363-08:00Winter SingHere she is at University Kids Daycare singing with her class:<br />
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<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/5eFd3-rYsWY&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/5eFd3-rYsWY&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br />
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We talked with Clara's Mom and it looks like we will be able to get her enrolled with Clara for Swim Classes. Yay!!!Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-22483559967327002882009-12-01T19:59:00.000-08:002009-12-01T20:03:18.791-08:00Incrementally more SophiaProving myself to be incapable of doing what little I do set out to do, (post more photos of the birthday and my Grand Portlandian Adventure) I will stem the tide of naysayers with this tidbit of video. BEHOLD! Sophia riding the mighty steam engine of the West Jordan Jumpin' Jacks!<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/6qYPWuEkVUk&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/6qYPWuEkVUk&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Laters.Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-82837204764180448712009-11-29T20:11:00.000-08:002009-11-29T20:20:24.183-08:00Sophia is Three!Well we had Sophia's third birthday party at Jumpin' Jacks in West Jordan and I have many photos that I will get up probably tomorrow I just wanted to do a mini update and show off her new bed and some other photos I really liked quickly. <br /><br />Here she and Abbey are slidin' at Jumpin' Jacks:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4146285608/" title="Whee! by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2689/4146285608_a0a27fd948.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Whee!" /></a><br /><br />Here's her and Zane tranced out on Thanksgiving day:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4146284266/" title="Thanksgiving trance by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2581/4146284266_4a060598b7.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Thanksgiving trance" /></a><br /><br />And here's her "Big Girl Bed" I spent today putting together. (You're killing me, Ikea!) I picked it up yesterday, despite a dead battery. I may not be good at asking people for help, but opening up my hood and getting out the jumper cables seemed to do the trick without me having to go up and ask someone, hee hee! Sophia seems delighted with the new bed, but we'll have to see how it goes on it's inaugural run tonight.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/4146284864/" title="Big Girl Bed by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2520/4146284864_f2ce42061d.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Big Girl Bed" /></a><br /><br />Oh, on the topic of the water heater sacrificial anode - I got it out, and don't believe it needs to be replaced yet. So I'll check it again next October and perhaps replace it then. I also have all my lovely Portland photos to blog about - that was much more enjoyable a trip than I had expected. More tomorrow.<br /><br />SharpieSharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-64227417726599522312009-10-04T19:20:00.000-07:002009-10-04T19:27:53.454-07:00Halloween approaches!Just haven't posted in awhile so I thought I'd throw up some pictures. I still need to blog about putting in the bathroom vent, hah! Sophia has moved up to the three year olds class and is slowly starting to get potty trained thanks to the wondrous bribery of M&Ms. <br /><br />Here's a cute shot of her being her dynamic self:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3982440374/" title="Twist & Shout Sophia by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2492/3982440374_fc86b2b16f.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Twist & Shout Sophia" /></a><br /><br />Here she is with me and Coco getting maximum use of her new bathrobe and witch hat:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3982438754/" title="Sophia, Daddy, and Coco by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3514/3982438754_ba065174c4.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Sophia, Daddy, and Coco" /></a><br /><br />Oh, and I pressure washed the back deck and touched up the stain job from last year. Every year I do this Trex (or a concrete pad) looks like a better deal.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3982438034/" title="Fleshly stained Deck. by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2582/3982438034_552db8394f.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Fleshly stained Deck." /></a><br /><br />Another view:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3982437532/" title="Profile View by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2520/3982437532_8335edec2f.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Profile View" /></a><br /><br />I'll blog more about replacing the sacrificial Anode in the water heater when I get that done.<br /><br />SharpieSharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-68040945568476877452009-08-07T11:00:00.000-07:002009-08-07T11:09:44.787-07:00Time Travelin' SophiaHere's the latest batch of daycare pictures - only $75.00 this time! The kid is too stinkin' cute, and Abbey's parenting.com height calculator says she's gonna be 6'3" when she's full grown. Aye caramba.<br /><br />With Flowers<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3796069131/" title="What a charmer by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3451/3796069131_2a3af81253.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="What a charmer" /></a><br /><br />Angelic <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3796069515/" title="Angels are REAL! by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2569/3796069515_94e1546487.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="Angels are REAL!" /></a><br /><br />Is this cool?<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3796888592/" title="I hope those aren't Mardi Gras beads... by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2641/3796888592_09d2ed9a4e.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="I hope those aren't Mardi Gras beads..." /></a><br /><br />Tea Time!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3796890228/" title="Fancy a spot of tea, Guv'nor? by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3462/3796890228_a8a6ac9487.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="Fancy a spot of tea, Guv'nor?" /></a><br /><br />Horsey is hungry<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3796892244/" title="Oh, hai! I was just gonna give this apple to the horse. by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3502/3796892244_c16d21c96e.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="Oh, hai! I was just gonna give this apple to the horse." /></a><br /><br />Intriguing Apple...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3796894334/" title="Maybe I'll eat it myself... by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3527/3796894334_70ab719fdd.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="Maybe I'll eat it myself..." /></a><br /><br />Literacy is overrated.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3796895926/" title="Why doesn't this book have any pictures?! by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2523/3796895926_a783d41b19.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="Why doesn't this book have any pictures?!" /></a><br /><br />Best one.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3796897194/" title="With a parasol by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3529/3796897194_33e2f051df.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="With a parasol" /></a><br /><br />She can now climb on top of the cab of my truck unaided. I found this out when I was alone with her and I was trying to work on my bike and replace the rear dérailleur tension pulleys. She was playing at her sand and water workstation toy set and I got really involved with the repair for about 5 minutes and didn't look up. I go to check on her, since she's not at the station and "Hi Daddy! I did it!" there she is on top of my truck. Oy vey. Well at least I know she ain't slow.<br /><br />SteveSharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-31600326949752828742009-08-01T18:23:00.000-07:002009-08-01T18:37:36.382-07:00New Bike Helmet for me: $40<br />New Bike Helmet for Sophia: $40<br />Bike Lock for Abbey: $13<br />New rear skewer to accommodate bike trailer: $16<br />Bike Trailer: $100<br />New Pedals with one side SPD, the other side a standard foot platform: $80<br />New Tubes and touring Tires for Abbey's Mt. Bike: $102<br />New tensioning pulleys to replace cracked ones: $45<br />Degreasing spray to clean up bikes we haven't rode in 10 years: $20<br />New tubes for my bike for peace of mind: $12<br />New rechargeable batteries for my bike light: $15<br />New battery charger to replace 15 year old one that doesn't work right anymore: $10<br />New front & rear lights for Abbey's new bike $60<br />New brake pads for my bike: $20<br /><br />Sophia sitting on my lap while I try to blog this: pricelessly annoying.<br /><br />Anyway, biking to save money on Gas is the smartest thing I have ever done! ;-) Grand Total? $573<br />yee haw!Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-86063051073413635612009-07-02T15:17:00.000-07:002009-07-02T16:10:16.174-07:00Sophia at Liberty ParkBack when Abbey was in the midst of her Kickball playing I'd take Sophers to Liberty Park every Thursday. Watching kickball isn't very intriguing for a 2.5 year old, so we'd always end up over at the "swings". This day it was finally warm enough that she could play in the water feature at the park. One of the other little girls is from her Daycare, Lauren. When she showed up she said over and over again "Hi Lauren! Hi Lauren!" Hilarious.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/yygJ9RhEJMA&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/yygJ9RhEJMA&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Weeee!Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-6021498419315904602009-06-25T15:44:00.000-07:002009-06-26T12:29:12.302-07:00If it ain't broke, I'll fix it.So I decided to put flex lines on the water heater because I don't apparently have enough to do already. That and I'm paranoid about gas leaks. This all looks pretty straight forward, but there was a lot of elbow grease required and I had to pull out the cheater bar to get some of the old connections to budge. Here's the new gas flex line installed with yellow Gas Line PTFE Thread Seal Tape on the ends. I checked after I connected it for leaks with soapy water, and everything was copasetic.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3659774321/" title="Flex gas line installed by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3644/3659774321_8487b86a56.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Flex gas line installed" /></a><br /><br />Here's the old water connections with the shut-off valve. They're 1/2" nominal copper pipe, which is unusual - the standard water pipe size on a water heater is 3/4" nominal copper. Note the dielectric unions to eliminate corrosion caused by battery effect between the copper pipes and iron in the heater.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3660572982/" title="The original setup by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3322/3660572982_a3c1fe88ba.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="The original setup" /></a><br /><br />I cleaned up the pipes where I'd be making my cuts and putting on my compression valves:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3660574702/" title="Pipes sanded clean by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3615/3660574702_74b629ce51.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Pipes sanded clean" /></a><br /><br />Here's my lovely water shut-off valve:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3659777655/" title="Turning off the water to the house by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2460/3659777655_979e15e84a.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Turning off the water to the house" /></a><br /><br />Here's my tight spaces circular pipe cutter ready to cut:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3659779785/" title="Cutter connected by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3582/3659779785_092b6fd7d8.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Cutter connected" /></a><br /><br />No turning back now!<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3659780917/" title="Pipes cut by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3332/3659780917_b069c28d14.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Pipes cut" /></a><br /><br />Pipes gone, unions removed. I left nubs for my compression valves to attach to.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3659783029/" title="Pipes detached by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2304/3659783029_f9b97d66c5.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Pipes detached" /></a><br /><br />Here's the new shut-off valve I made with a small piece of scrap copper joining it to the 1/2" copper to 3/4" MIPS adapter.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3659786319/" title="Compression fitting connected to valve by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3324/3659786319_46d2af64f6.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Compression fitting connected to valve" /></a><br /><br />Adapter's and shut-off installed.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3659787595/" title="3/4" FIPS to 1/2" nominal installed by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3325/3659787595_e815b90482.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="3/4" MIPS to 1/2" nominal installed" /></a><br /><br />Here's my first try:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3659788885/" title="Attempt #1 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2429/3659788885_b3aea8b89d.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Attempt #1" /></a><br /><br />The copper flex lines were really hard to work with and kinked pretty bad and then the whole thing ended up leaking anyway because the water heater nipples had corroded so bad I couldn't get a firm seal to the flex lines. Luckily I already had some new combination nipples / dielectric unions:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3660591752/" title="New dielectric Nipple by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3638/3660591752_5bb57c3355.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="New dielectric Nipple" /></a><br /><br />The old nipples were a B!TC# to get out, this is where I brought out the two foot long cheater bar to get the leverage to pull them out.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3659791315/" title="Nipple decay by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3340/3659791315_38d54e249e.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Nipple decay" /></a><br /><br />Here's my second attempt with some steel sheathed "flexible" water heater connectors. These were the shortest that Home Depot sold - 15". No leaks but it looked awful, and the kinks would not smooth out. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3659794767/" title="Attempt #2 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3185/3659794767_55a2fb74c8.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Attempt #2" /></a><br /><br />This held for a couple days while I waited for the special order 12" stainless steel connectors I ordered online to arrive. They were cheaper than the Home Depot ones, got here super quick and were a dream to work with in comparison. Here's the finished project:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3659795953/" title="We have a winner! by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3358/3659795953_b41c978076.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="We have a winner!" /></a><br /><br />I'm really glad I did this seeing how corroded the old nipples were. Next up: Installing the insulating blanket I have had sitting in the basement for the water heater for the last year.<br /><br />Also, I will try to compete with my wifes awesome blog in the dimension of our super cute daughter. I have Lithium Batteries in the camera now so it shouldn't die every time I try to take pix, and I got a card reader ($13 at Office Depot!) so I don't have to find that dang proprietary cord every GD time. Also, we have pix from Abbey running the 5k in April that I should put up. <br /><br />Oh, I dropped Sophers off at Daycare this morning where it was Bike Day. I let her ride her "bike":<br /><img src="http://www.supercoolbaby.com/archives/2008/02/24/modernseed_1987_5273229.gif" alt="Plasma Car" /><br /><br />in to daycare so I could fit her helmet. It was hilarious because she did her victory laps she usually does when she goes in except zooming at top speed on her bike. Everyone was laughing and the other kids were screaming in delight. Too cute.<br /><br />SharpieSharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-16634824168228693372009-03-12T14:11:00.000-07:002009-03-13T08:54:39.782-07:00New Crawlspace storage area, no dollars<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3347672715/" title="Crawl space insulation by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3610/3347672715_139f71fe6f.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Crawl space insulation" /></a><br /><br />As with many home improvement projects it never occurs to me that I should take "before" pictures until I'm halfway done. So what you see above is the entry to the crawlspace storage area a previous owner created by partitioning off about 40 square foot of the crawlspace near the back stairs of our house. It had a dirt floor and was filthy and I wasn't quite sure how to get into it when I insulated the rest of the crawlspace last summer. Turns out it was just painted shut and I had to cut the door around some of the stair tread rubber edging that had been added since it was created. To get to this point I got the broom and cleaned out all the cobwebs, and then scooped all the loose rocks and dirt I could into a bucket and emptied that outside. Then I shop vac'd all over down there. Next I got some of the six mil plastic I had left over from doing the rest of the crawl space's vapor barrier, and cut it to fit in the space. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3347671901/" title="Crawl space insulation by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3587/3347671901_b6028e440a.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Crawl space insulation" /></a><br /><br />This shot's kind of blurry but you can see that I've taped the plastic to the walls with aluminum tape that won't deteriorate over time. That insulated duct is the only return air duct in the back of the house. I removed all the nails to the left and ripped out the bizarre 2x4 with a row of nails to hang bits of wire on to the right. There was also a hole to the rest of the crawl space that I taped over with the plastic to stop a pretty strong cold draft into the space. You can see that below:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3348507346/" title="Crawl space insulation by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3590/3348507346_7471aa0cdf.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Crawl space insulation" /></a><br /><br />Here's where the people under the stairs would live:<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3348506524/" title="Crawl space insulation by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3451/3348506524_b2eea9ed85.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Crawl space insulation" /></a><br /><br />A crawl space with a view:<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3348506108/" title="Crawl space insulation by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3630/3348506108_6d4b05471d.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Crawl space insulation" /></a><br /><br />Okay so heres the finished insulation installed:<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3348505832/" title="Crawl space insulation by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3624/3348505832_7752313f57.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Crawl space insulation" /></a><br /><br />What's not apparent is how bass ackwards the addition to my house is - none of the floor joists were installed by a sane man - the first two joists are spaced 21" on center, while the next two are 19" on center. Standard floor joist spacing? 16" or 24" on center, which is why the insulation batts come in 15" or 23" widths. So I couldn't tack them in with my hammer style staple gun, I had to get 24" insulation support wires and wire cutting pliers and cut every support wire to size. And cut a 4" insulation strip to fill the joist bay fully. At least the insulation was "free" as I had it left over from my garage insulation job (which is another blog topic I want to write about at some point). But that's 40 sq. feet of my house that wasn't insulated at all now done, which should hopefully make some difference. Plus some extra storage space to stash stuff in. I don't know how convenient it'll be, but we'll see I guess. Yay DIY home improvement!Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-56426011868871782752009-02-12T08:46:00.000-08:002009-02-12T09:01:10.513-08:00Valentime's rosesHere's Sophia smelling Abbey's Valentine's day roses:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3274735418/" title="Stop and smell the roses by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3463/3274735418_e0c622774e.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Stop and smell the roses" /></a><br /><br />"Flowers smell pretty!"<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3274735696/" title="Stop and smell the roses by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3373/3274735696_918d5fa4d8.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Stop and smell the roses" /></a><br /><br />Whoa! Lets not get carried away, baby!<br /><br />Then after I gave LM her bath last night, she was trying to lick her bath water and her wet towel and I kept telling her no, and "Yuck!" which she found hilarious. Then I was drying her off and she went to lick my shirt and I said "I don't care if you lick my shirt. Lick away." Apparently that's the funniest thing she'd ever heard and the rest of the night she was saying "LICK AWAY! ahahahha Lick away, Daddy!" <br /><br />And now the monster story. She didn't want to get out of the truck after getting home from Daycare and was playing in the driver's seat, so I was bent over across her car seat with my knees against the side of the truck where should couldn't see them trying to convince her to come in with me out of the cold. I started drumming my knees against the truck and she looked surprised, and I thought "Aha! I know how I'll get her to come in." and so I said "Sophia! What's that sound? Where's it coming from?" Some amount of worry came over her face. "We better get inside, I don't know what that sound is." and she said "A monster, Daddy!" and I stupidly said "Yeah, lets hurry and get away from the monster!". Ha-ha! I'd succesfully gotten her inside! ...only to discover she wouldn't go in the back part of the house because "A monster, a monster! Ahhh!" So Abbey had to come home and see all this then explain to Sophia that the Dinosaur had scared the monster away. So now she comes home every day and the first thing out of her mouth when we walk in the door is "Monster gone, huh Daddy." Maybe one day I'll learn better.Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-61412238263882928152009-02-07T20:08:00.001-08:002009-02-10T12:40:39.957-08:00More old pixWe're doing blast from the past photo's over on Facebook, so I thought I'd throw up some old pictures of me.<br /><br />The first one here is just a photo I took on the beach in Mexico in the middle of the night. I thought it turned out really pretty<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3262071744/" title="Sharpie02 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3399/3262071744_541737317b.jpg" width="500" height="340" alt="Sharpie02" /></a><br /><br />Here is my dorky Junior (Nope it's my sophomore pic - I'm wearing a slimeballs skateboarding shirt in my Junior year photo) year school photo - the last year I attended highschool, before going into con-current enrollment over at UVSC. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3261244007/" title="Sharpie05 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3456/3261244007_13a74a590e.jpg" width="394" height="500" alt="Sharpie05" /></a><br /><br />Another skating pic from the series I posted on FB earlier<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3262071658/" title="Sharpie04 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3506/3262071658_6e0d3a4189.jpg" width="500" height="329" alt="Sharpie04" /></a><br /><br />What's that? Oh I didn't hear you over the sound of how awesome the 90s can be while standing in front of the Hollywood sign.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3261243907/" title="Sharpie03 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3342/3261243907_8f0c9cd838.jpg" width="500" height="277" alt="Sharpie03" /></a><br /><br />Another pic on that beach in Mexico with the dreaded rat-tail.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3261243859/" title="Sharpie01 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3510/3261243859_c7f43546a0.jpg" width="500" height="330" alt="Sharpie01" /></a><br /><br />Inexplicably, the San Diego LDS Temple open house.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3261243821/" title="Sharpie San Diego Temple by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3361/3261243821_a45927ff6c.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Sharpie San Diego Temple" /></a>Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-47032449867769391352009-02-06T13:27:00.000-08:002009-02-06T19:08:54.248-08:00Getting dressed...<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3258235401/" title="Daddy and Sophia by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3441/3258235401_729834cb31.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="Daddy and Sophia" /></a><br /><br />Getting dressed can be a challenge when you have such a dedicated helper...Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-55399012507949148862009-02-05T14:57:00.000-08:002009-02-05T15:08:51.994-08:00Ride 'em cowgirl!I got some great pics of Sophia playing with the fish Denise gave her for her first birthday and thought I'd post 'em up. I took them this morning with the Sony cam, cable be darned. I've taken to hosting everything on flickr since they have no size limits for your photo collection if you buy the pro account.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3255642817/" title="DSC00455 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3455/3255642817_bc5b8127d3.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="DSC00455" /></a><br /><br />Yee haw! Note the monkey riding shotgun.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3256476498/" title="DSC00459 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3498/3256476498_ae51076972.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="DSC00459" /></a><br /><br />Disaster! Oh the Humanity! <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3256479688/" title="DSC00462 by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3312/3256479688_919325c6ac.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="DSC00462" /></a><br /><br />Never leave a man behind!Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-8763710148766716952009-02-03T15:14:00.000-08:002009-02-03T15:15:05.846-08:00Reaction dogIt's.... MESMERIZING.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sharper73/3236790731/" title="Reaction Dog by sharper73, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3374/3236790731_68b2400375_o.gif" width="259" height="264" alt="Reaction Dog" /></a>Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3761009790902998457.post-19799271379146780302009-01-22T13:51:00.000-08:002009-01-22T14:39:33.504-08:00Checking out Google Chrome for posting some pix to the blog<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_p6AULv_Cw9Y/SXjv0TQqXlI/AAAAAAAAAzY/1gASN8qKzJI/s1600-h/IMG00489.jpg"><img style="float:center; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_p6AULv_Cw9Y/SXjv0TQqXlI/AAAAAAAAAzY/1gASN8qKzJI/s320/IMG00489.jpg" border="0" Title="Swinging with Daddy" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294245043776413266" /></a><br />Most nights when we get home LM likes to climb up on the swing and then pat the seat next to her and say "Sit, Daddy, sit!" So then we'll sit in the cold and swing. She gets mad at me if I ask her questions about her day or try to sing songs so we just sit and hope the moon comes out.<br /><br /><hr><p><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_p6AULv_Cw9Y/SXjv0P5WfZI/AAAAAAAAAzQ/6OlNO778rms/s1600-h/IMG00481.jpg"><img style="float:center; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_p6AULv_Cw9Y/SXjv0P5WfZI/AAAAAAAAAzQ/6OlNO778rms/s320/IMG00481.jpg" border="0" title="Backpack monkey" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294245042873335186" /></a><br />So here's Love Monkey in the ba'pack she likes me to take her around in. We have a better camera than my camera phone, but it's a Sony so has a non-standard USB cable which irritates me to the point that I seldom use it.Sharpiehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03661610480903914896noreply@blogger.com1