August 7, 2013

Good morning! I love the new swing (1st pic)! Putting that frame together was HARD though. When the directions say: "For this next step, you'll need TWO people ...", they're not kidding! I was alone. Pete was at a city council meeting & Kyle was at Boy Scouts. You assemble the frame flat on the ground. The center beam, then the legs all loosely bolted to it ... looking like Bambi spread eagle on the ice. Then the fun part: TWO people ... pick the entire thing up over your head until the legs swing down & it looks like it does in the photo. Now, while 1 person holds it up (if you even 

think of letting go it will just fall over), the other person hammers the self-tapping screws through the braces & ¼" into the frame, then screws them in. Well, here I was standing in the center of this frame holding it up ... couldn't let go. All my tools were on the table on my left. No, I couldn't reach them. I had to shuffle left across the center beam until I got to the left edge, then shimmy down the left edge while this

thing is swaying back & forth ... grab the hammer, ratchet, & screws & try to find a place to put them all (no tool belt & no pockets) ... shimmy back up the left side, shuffle back across the top beam ... now I'm back in the center & have my tools ... barely. I'm trying not to drop anything. OK ... 1st brace. Aw crap! All the braces are on the table all the way to my right! Shuffle across the center beam, all the while

holding this thing up so it doesn't fall on top of me WHILE holding all the tools & screws ... shimmy down the right side, re-e-e-ach out & grab a brace, (I've now got a brace in 1 hand, screws in the other, & tools clamped between my thighs). I shimmy back up the right side, shuffle across the top until I'm in the center again (I'm wiped out & running out of daylight because I didn't START this project until it

dropped DOWN to 99°) which in August in Texas isn't until evening. Now, hammering the 1st screw through the 1st brace & into the frame isn't fun when you're also holding the thing up & trying to line up the screw THROUGH the brace, with the marks you made on the frame when you measured everything for placement while it was flat on the ground. With 1 hand, hold the screw through the brace, line it up, try to hold it

in position WHILE you're holding the entire frame up w/ the same hand, then with the other hand, let go (and hope the whole thing doesn't fall on you) & hammer the screw in far enough to start the hole & hold the screw & brace when you let go of it. That 1st one took a while because any movement made this thing sway & almost fall ON me. OK, got it! Now where is that ratchet? Carefully swap out the hammer w/

the ratchet that I've got clamped between my legs (remember I have the bag of screws in my left hand also ... the hand I'm using to hold the entire contraption UP). Ratchet the screw about halfway in. Now shuffle to the left & grab the bottom of the brace ... line it up on the mark on the left leg of the frame. Aw crap! Not even close, I need to move the left legs out more. Now if I just sway the whole frame to the right, it would be too off balance & fall over on me because I'm having trouble holding it up while it's BALANCED & teetering ... w/ bag of screws & bottom of the brace in my left hand & the ratchet in my right hand ... and holding this thing up over my head & steady, I lift up on the top of the frame just enough for the left legs to come up off the ground & swing my knee out & knock the left legs out until the brace. As I swing my knee out to move the legs of the frame out, the hammer hits the ground. CRAP! I had forgotten I was holding tools between my thighs. Everything is lined up now ... Hug the left side of the frame, shimmy down, grab the hammer, hammer the screw in through the brace & into the frame right on the mark I made. Single-handedly swap out the hammer for the ratchet & ratchet the screw into the leg of the frame about halfway. NOW I can finally let go of the frame without it collapsing. From here it all got easier ... well, except I was running out of light & exhausted. I finished the entire frame just as it was getting too dark to see anymore. I SO need minions. I'm getting too old for this crap! HA! Now when it finally cools down outside for a day in January, I can sit outside & enjoy my beautiful swing! :) OTHER than the swing, yesterday was Sims day. Nope, nothing else ... just SIMS! ALL DAY. It was great! I played LizC864 7. My Sim Liz Singleton (1st gen) (2nd pic) was in the university on an apprentice fine arts award. She graduated (3rd pic: High School Diploma, University Banner, University Degree, & Master of Guitar Award) & earned an additional trait; Artistic. She returned home, mastered the guitar skill & started getting regular promotions & raises at work (she's in the music career). Suddenly, her husband Rodney Singleton gets a gift (3rd pic) in the mail from Gracie Loveland (she's trouble!). For those of you who don't read Simlish, it's says "FIRE STATION". :) Liz, in addition to going to work every day, also took care of their baby, Orlando Singleton (2nd gen). When he aged up into a toddler, she potty trained him & taught him to talk & walk & read him books that would help him start off at a higher level when he starts learning skills as a child. When he aged up into a child, he gained the "Loves the Heat" trait & then I switched over & started playing Orlando ... taking him through school & having him learn every trait available for a child. After I started playing Orlando, Liz & Rodney started arguing every night over Rodney's affair w/ Gracie. The arguments got worse ... they became screaming matches, then slaps, then an all out brawl. One night Liz left work early to go home & divorce Rodney. When Orlando aged up into a teen, he gained the Unlucky trait. Still having no specific & useful traits, he spent his high school days learning every skill there is & also learned to drive (5th pic) until he aged up into a young adult & gained the Vegetarian trait. With still no useful job-related skills, he decided to go into the science career. He took the university aptitude test & scored apprentice in 2 different areas, neither of them being science. I decided to let him stay home & work on those skills needed for science (alchemy, fishing, gardening, handiness, & science). He's re-taken the exam a couple times & each time scored better on science. He'll go to the university when he's got a full scholarship which means it'll cost much less & he can be finished w/ his degree in 1 year instead of 3. This morning after taking the dogs out, I loaded up My Dream Home (6th pic) game in Sims. This is one of the 2 games where I freeze time. My Sim (literally ... ME) is eating breakfast at my dream outdoor dining set on the beautiful back deck (7th pic).

Because cows are sacred to Hindus, the McDonald's restaurant in new Delhi, India, makes it burgers out of sheep meat.

Did you see the television evangelist Pat Robertson announced that he'll run for president starting a year from now if he can get 3 million people to sign a petition for him? Now Pat apparently decided to run for president - I'll tell you the way he decided. He got a letter in the mail ... it said, "You may already be a winner ..." -Johnny Carson 1986

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If you're single, this is a good time to make personal changes. A doctor may suggest a prescription deodorant. For our sake, use it.

Make a log cabin out of pencils on your desk.

Most dangerous countries on the planet today top 10:

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Your toddler just pulled a mug of hot coffee down on her lower body. You:

a. Cover the burn w/ ice packs.

b. Use cold running water to help cool the burn & relieve pain.

c. Take a stick of butter out of the fridge & rub it all over the affected area.

Answer: b. Ice can make a burn worse, & the use of butter is an old wives' tale that could cause infection. If the burn covers a large area of your child's skin or she's having difficulty breathing, you should also call 911.