–Changed clocks.
–Took a walk on the beach.
Page 28 of 29
–Deposited Golden 1 check at Bay Federal, had lunch at McDonald’s, bought deodorant and jam at Target.
–World Time called to say Rolex 5512 is ready.
–Grace’s chair pillow came in, as did the close-out cashier’s check from Golden 1.
–Took a shower.
–Not much to report.
–Got Grace’s voicemail notification working.
–Replaced hearing aid batteries around 8 PM.
–Played with regulators. Discovered that diaphragms in purge valves differ in weight and (thus) stiffness. Stiffer ones breathe harder, by slowing deflection of tilt needle. Optimized two “keeper” regulators with 1.0g diaphragms.
–Roasted decaf beans.
–Carter knife came in. Meh for now.
–Played with Teknas.
–Fed the birds.
–Went to Aqua Safari to get a SCUBA tank refill.
–Tried to put new faceplate and buttons on iPod Classic. Failed miserably. The ribbon connectors on those things are absurdly hard to deal with. Ordered another iPod.
–Dull day.
–Played with Teknas, sanding some main diaphragms. Ran out of air.
–Went to Santa Cruz Electronics to get a soldering iron.
–Roasted some beans to a char. Take your eyes off ’em for a minute, or 20…
–Played with regulators. Got two good needle seats from eBay regs. Worked on my needle; got it going again. Patched the high-pressure hose with Flex Tape and got the pressure gauge going too.
–Played with iPod Nano. It’s dead, Jim. Ordered new battery.
–Mail finally came around 5 PM—Teknas, LG phone. Teknas seem to have good seats, phone is so-so.
–Went shopping at Farm Fresh Produce and Safeway.
–Made breakfast for dinner.
–Went to Shopper’s Corner, splurged on deli meat and cheese.
–Went to “farmers market” in Corralitos (2 stands at the Cultural Center near Corralitos Sausage).
–Columbo.
–Played with regulators. Learned that “IP creep” means intermediate pressure is creeping UP, not down. Much to learn…
–Steinhart Ocean 39 Explorer came in. As usual, lume color is just too weird.
–Roasted some caf beans.
–Played with Teknas; former successful pilot valve seat doesn’t hold pressure now. Rats…
–Got some (minimal sunflower) bird seed at Aptos Feed.
–Right hearing aid battery died around 7 PM.
–Slightly over-roasted some decaf beans. Better than slightly under.
–Curtis Finton will mail taxes. He recommended applying $4,500 federal overpayment to 2019 taxes, and keeping $1,000 state overpayment.
–Actually got a Tekna to breathe with my jerry-rigged valve seat. Eureka!
–Got 13 bagels at The Bagelry and dessert at Aldo’s.
–Went to Aqua Safari in Soquel to get SCUBA tank refilled. $55 for 10 fills, $20 for annual visual inspection, pick it up tomorrow. Shoulda gone to Monterey.
–Chicken pot pie for dinner.
–Sunny day for a change.
–Replaced hearing aid batteries around 8 PM.
–Got 2 bearclaws at El Patio!
–iPod Classic came in. Nice machine, but screen is scuffed. grrr…
–PO finally delivered hole punch. It’s better than old one, so let’s rebuild Teknas!
–Synchronized Daytona with time.is.
–Went shopping at Farm Fresh Produce and Safeway. I had a breakfast sandwich at Donut Basket, as usual.
–Lotsa rain, a little thunder.
–Imitation Bergeon 5700 caseback opener came. Doesn’t seem to be centered, which is kind of critical. I looked up Bergeon to see if it had adjustable centering; it doesn’t. It must come perfectly aligned. [Edit] I discovered that if I leave some lateral play in the top and bottom chucks, it works. I strongly suspect Bergeon leaves play as well; they don’t build to the necessary tolerances.
–Louise Stephens/Laurel Hunt/Brenda Wyckoff sent emails. Apparently Bruce Franz’s wife Tucky has been in ICU since Christmas. Yikes…..
–Dr. Michael Dacey did Mohs surgery on basal/squamous carcinoma on nose. Also did a shave biopsy of spot on right ear that keeps coming back. Seems like a knowledgeable/conscientious guy.
–Horotec crystal/bezel press came in. Heavy.
–Borealis Estoril watch came in. Nice.
–After brief use of Spark email, went back to Thunderbird.
–Re-polished Rolex Daytona. Looks good.
–Took a walk to/on the beach. Freezing.
–Went to Frank’s Pharmacy for pills, Safeway for sundries.
–Replaced hearing aid batteries around Noon.
–Rainy, dreary day.
–Heard from Dr. Liao’s office that carcinoma on nose is squamous. Mohs surgery will be scheduled.
–Got a dozen bagels at The Bagelry, Soquel, and some dessert at Aldo’s.
–Trying to use pencil erasers as valve seats on Tekna regulators. No luck yet. Maybe I should try to adapt rubber seats from (a) espresso machine steam fittings or (b) other more “standard” regulators. Duh.
–Ran EUFY in the bedroom.
–That’s about it.
–Went to see Dr. Liao in Los Gatos. Biopsy of thing on nose, likely basal cell, likely Mohs surgery. Froze a bunch of sun spots for $300 (pay at the clinic).
–Replaced hearing aid batteries around Noon.
–Sold a couple of Tekna regulators–the prototype and a brass body. Revived a needle that hadn’t been working by carefully cleaning it and the valve seat.
–Helical auger spring broke on Orphan Espresso Apex hand grinder. Looks like a weak spot to me. Emailed Doug and Barb Garrott asking for replacement; no response yet.
–Super Bowl Sunday. Made some yummy nachos. Grace made slow-cooker chili.
–Resurrected 7 Tekna regulators (3 working) to sell after being contacted by scubaboard.com members who read my Tekna rebuild post from a couple years ago.
–Still a couple of leaks in garden shed, maybe due to plastic sheet blowing off. Too muddy to check.
–Got all documents ready to send to Curtis Finton for taxes.
–Went shopping for cough drops, lemon drops, milk, nacho sauce.
–Bike discs came in.
–Robert Erickson knife came in: beautiful. Also deba from Australia: I actually flattened the bevel without destroying it (yet).
–Replaced hearing aid batteries around 10 PM.
–Decaf beans done with ethyl acetate process came in. Okay, but not mind-bogglingly different from Sweet Maria’s. Probably a little under-roasted, though.
–Tidied up a little.
–Played with bike brakes. No progress.
–Rolex case tube came in; too small for crown. Discovered 7030 case tube I’d bought a while back. It fits, but crown I just bought is incorrect. Ordered correct crown on eBay. grrrr……
–Took Rolex 5512 to World Time for overhaul. He also adjusted (free) timing on Daytona, from -9 s/d to +2 s/d.
–Borealis DW came in, looks good. Got timing from +12 s/d to +1 s/d with 0 beat error.
–Removed case tube just installed in Rolex 1680; had to grind it down and it still wasn’t right. Ordered proper case tube (I hope).
–Replaced hearing aid batteries around 6 PM.
–Put new tophat crystal on Rolex 1680.
–Made blueberry muffins.
–Rolex 5512 came in. Very nice, but needs service. Yuzh agreed to pay.
–Re-re-re-activated Moto G-Plus phone.
–Got bike brakes and shifter sorted, mostly.
–Bought Rolex 5512 from Yuzh. He agreed to consign some watches, details to be arranged.
–Did a little pruning in front.
–Woll glass pan cover came in. Also Rolex broaching tools and Konosuke Fujiyama petty.
–Hard bike ride up Alta to La Selva.
–Played around a lot with bike rotors. Might be good now. Might not.
–Bought many bear claws at El Patio. Apparently Aldo’s recovered from a small kitchen fire.
–Another gloomy day.
–Played around with watches. Learned (a) how to use case clamps correctly and (b) how to remove rotor on Omega 55x and 56x movements. Feeling lucky, ordered another 565 donor watch for Watchco build.
–Took the BMW to Pot Stop to get a pot.
–Replaced hearing aid batteries around 6 PM. Left hearing aid was really weak, but it was just earwax. Good now.
–Went shopping at Food Maxx.
–Wrestled case tube out of Rolex 1680. Really curious to see what the new one looks like.
–Sent Rolex rivet bracelet to LAWW to get link added.
–Updated email to bf@vstat.com at 1.2 zillion sites.
–Dank, drizzly day.
–Installed lighted mirror in Grace’s bedroom.
–Rolex 1680 came in. Bracelet has 10 links, not 11 as advertised. Just fits, will be tight after a few pull-ups.
–Went to The Buttery (bakery) and Shopper’s Corner in Santa Cruz. Great stuff.
–Replaced hearing aid batteries around 2 PM.
–Played with Contax N Digital cameras. Took two apart. Turns out Keh was lying when they said they didn’t want to swap bodies because working camera contained spliced wiring from previous repair. The cameras were identical inside; neither appeared to have ever been worked on. Also discovered significant ding on NOS camera. I don’t think it came that way.
–Rolex 1680 delayed due to snow storms back East.
–Roasted some caf beans; burned ’em.
–Dug trench around garden shed to stave off water incursion.
–Replaced hearing aid batteries around 1 PM.
–Suwannee (Nighthaxan) Phat Phinger knife came in; way too small.
–Got bagels at Bagelry Soquel.
–Got notice from Northern Trust that Sutter pension will move from Comerica to Bay Federal as requested. Might take a cycle or two.
–Bought Shigefusa 300 kitaeji yanagiba at KKF.
–Tsukasa Hinoura parer came in from Epicurean Edge. (a) not the one in the listing. (b) too blingy.
–UV flashlight came. Works on old Speedmaster, but 1978 Rolex 5513 is DEAD.
–Horotec case tube set came in from Cousins UK.
–Helped Grace (a little) make some brioche buns. Not bad.
–Made Pillsbury cinnamon rolls for dessert. Good.
–Paid estimated taxes online.
–Rain.
–Turned the thermostat up from 66 to 70 during the day (11 to 5).
–Power outage from 6:11 PM to around 9:15 PM. Starting to get annoying.
–Rain.
–Turned on Comcast auto payment. BayFed account was correct, but apparently autopay was off.
–Rolex Daytona came in; nice. Also metric tap and die set, Nike Zomeros, and bracelet for Rolex 5513.
–Called eBay, got a refund on the Rolex GMT with bad dial/caseback.
–Worked on bike. Hope floating rotors: not good. Spacer kit made for 180/160 brakes: not good. Finally got it going with old rotors and old (ground down) spacers.
–Took shower.
–Went shopping at Farm Fresh Produce and Safeway.
–Replaced hearing aid batteries around 6 PM. Did not aerate them.
–Pancakes and bacon for breakfast.
–Barbecued steak sent by Rick/Hatsumi. Yum!
–Really windy; palm trees were bent over, redwood in back was shedding like crazy.
–Took pictures of Pat’s Christmas lights. Auto focus seems better than manual, for me, anyway.
–Roasted some Brazilian beans.
–Took a lot of work with Scotchbrite belts to clean up stains on the Martell petty.
–Waited all day for mail. Came at 6PM–Martell knife, coffee beans, mag strip reader.
–Built/installed long 3-shelf coffee table that Grace got us for Christmas.
–Took the Beemer to PAMF for annual Medicare checkup. New shingles vaccine recommended–bad side effects for some.
–Hope floating discs came in, plus ruby bearings for Seamaster bezel.
–Went to Costco for water, Coke, hot dog…
–Returned Rolex GMT to seller. Waiting for the outrage.
–Put Rolex Daytona 116500LN back together after buffing out scratches from bezel removal, put polished steel bezel on (replacing original black ceramic), decided to keep it.
–Brother Tom wrote; I wrote lengthy response back. Gift basket I ordered for Tom/Kati on 12/17, for delivery 12/21, was delivered today (12/26). grrrr……
–Watched Have Gun Will Travel “Genesis” episode (Smoke). Superb.
–Installed Bat Rug Christmas gift from Grace in bedroom. Cool.
–Christmas: Batman rug, TV table, Growlie, plumbing inspection scope.
–Replaced hearing aid batteries around 9 PM.
–Made mincemeat cookies.
–Inaugurated the annual Christmas “Mowing of the Lawn.”
–Discovered Rolex Daytona had warranty card already filled out. It seems (after asking) that most “new” eBay Daytonas have their warranty cards filled out. Flippers…
–Worked on bike brakes; got calipers to fit 180mm rotor nicely in front.
–Otto Frei crystals came in, plus present from Susie.
–Opened an eBay case for 1983 Rolex GMT with scratched up dial and caseback. Seller alleges I switched watches. Talked with eBay concierge, who said he would handle it on 12/27.
–Got the ornament photo printed at Staples (free!). Got a yam and such at Food Maxx.
–Watched “A Christmas Story.” Been a while; forgot a lot of it.
–Went to Bay Federal to order checks on non-interest account.
–Made brownies.
–Roasted some Colombian caf beans.
–Took Grace shopping at Target, after dinner at Round Table Pizza.
–Grocery shopping: Farm Fresh Produce and Safeway.
–Watched “Sherlock Holmes” via USB. Pretty darn good, with usual muffled audio.
–Bought Martell petty via KKF.
–Emailed Northern Trust attempting to get benefit payments sent to BayFed rather than Comerica.
–Replaced shift cabling on Fatboy. Went okay, but now doesn’t shift much…
–Epoxy came; fixed broken cabinet knob.
–Went to Bay Federal, wired $23,535 to Diamonds East International for new Rolex Daytona 116500LN.
–Replaced brake cables on Specialized Fatboy. Extruded inner wires do seem smoother.
–Rolex 5513 “snow white” came in. Tried to replace crystal; failed (new one too big I think). Too small, case dings too serious; will sell.
–Trimmed the Christmas tree. Would look better with colored lights.
–Replaced hearing aid batteries around 10AM.
–Set up CD player and reel-to-reel tape recorder for Christmas music.
–Bought Ryobi hedge trimmer.
–Bought Rolex 5513 Mk1 maxi dial, “snow white.”
–Went Christmas shopping on Pacific Ave. in Santa Cruz. Did okay. Lunch at Pleasure Pizza.
–Started trimming Christmas tree.
–Shopping at Farm Fresh Produce and Safeway. Bacon/egg/cheese sandwich at Donut Basket near Safeway.
–Paid Honda insurance bill online at State Farm.
–Bought an “Xtend and Climb” ladder at Ace Hardware Scotts Valley to aid in putting plastic sheet over garden shed roof. Waiting for rain.
–Went Christmas shopping at Capitola Mall. Got stuff for Nourse’s “12 days of Christmas” drawers.
–Omega Seamaster 150th anniversary watch came in, with SCUBA tank box. Looks NOS, runs perfect.
–Replaced hearing aid batteries around 5 PM.
–Lunch at Erik’s, then mailed Grace’s presents.
–Re-updated (tried anyway) paperless settings at Chase so Grace gets paper.
–Orphan Espresso Apex Grinder came in–heavy! Seems to make a smooth cup o’ coffee.
–Cleaned up area in back of garden shed–bamboo was coming back. Hope to put plastic sheet over roof to keep it dry.
–Refrigerator door was open all night; thermometer read 92.
–Got gas at Safeway ($3.39/gallon with rewards number).
–Took a shower.
–Mailed Rob’s present to Canada; had lunch at Burger King.
–Garden shed roof patches seem to be keeping it dry.
–Played with Omega 1039 bracelets.
–Patched roof of garden shed with duct tape.
–Continued cataloging watches; scrapped Daytona due to pushbutton stem release. grrrr…
–Mail delivered (!), including notice that “recipient not available for signature.” grrrr…
–Got 6 sesame bagels + “Cheese Louise” cream cheese at the Bagelry, Soquel.
–Svengoolie: 20 Million Miles to Earth.