bunsen_h

I've been trying to find a good location for the can crusher from Lee Valley, and have run up against one complication of my house.  Its interior walls are (for the most part) constructed from a material that's closer to sheet concrete than standard drywall, and the nails/screws attaching these sheets to the studs are deeply buried, and well masked.  Finding the studs is therefore a bit tricky.  The "percussion" method, tapping the wall to find where it sounds less hollow, doesn't work well.  Magnetism-based stud finders are also unreliable, since the vibration from sliding the tool across the wall messes up the indication of where the nail is lurking... the attraction between the magnet and the screws is weak.

Last night, I had an idea: a pair of rare-earth disk magnets with a thread caught between them.  I used a thread length of about 15 cm, held the free end to the wall, and let the magnets swing gently back and forth as a pendulum.  I moved the top end around slowly, to keep the pendulum swinging, and quickly found some hidden screws.  Because the weight of the magnets was being supported by the thread, and I was watching for changes in the pendulum's motion instead of trying to see if it was moving at all relative to some fixed point, I had a much more sensitive detector for the buried metal.  One's eye is very sensitive to changes in the motion of an object that's supposed to be moving smoothly on a fixed path.

On the down side, there aren't any wall studs behind any of the areas of the kitchen walls that might be convenient for the can crusher to be located.
 

When I opened the hatch to the attic space, to check on the ventilation pipe that goes down to the laundry tub drain, there was a shower of ants.  Black, most a bit less than 1 cm long, a few as much as double that.  They intensely dislike light and scurry for a dark corner or other cover.

I think I've caught most of the ones that escaped into the house, and under the circumstances, I'm killing them as I catch them.  I have not yet persuaded the cat to even come look at them, and I suppose I should be glad that she isn't much of a hunter.

This is getting to be a bit much.
 

I was at the hospital much too late last night, helping mentisiterinvit.  So I was still up at 1:20 this morning, about to get into bed, when I heard a thump and a "patter" from downstairs.  It pretty much had to be something that the cat had done.  After a few seconds, I decided to go down and see if it was something serious, because, you know, cats.  (Young children, too, but there are none in residence.)

It turned out that Oxana/Paris, our not-too-bright-even-by-feline-standards cat, had managed to knock the side tube off the gerbil cage.  (The tube is held in place just by friction; it snaps downwards, and there's no way for an animal inside the cage to dislodge it.)  The gerbil, even less bright than the cat, decided to make a break for freedom, and was being followed by the cat.  Luckily, the cat is more curious about the scurrying critter than malicious, and wasn't trying hard to catch it.  I managed to catch the gerbil without harm to either pet, as far as I can tell, and got it back into its cage.

I spent a few minutes trying to figure out how to secure the side tube, and eventually zip-tied it to the cage so it can't come off.  I don't think that either animal can dislodge it.

I really didn't need the excitement when I was trying to unwind before going to sleep.  I lay in bed composing a letter to the company that makes the cages, suggesting that they should add some kind of lock to the side tube to make sure that it can't be knocked off so easily.

I'm very tired.  I apologize for the title of this post, but I really couldn't resist.
 

For the past week, the house has been without internet service, and largely without phone service.

It started when we tried to have the phone service switched from Bell to Rogers, leaving behind the internet service.  I don't want to switch the internet stuff yet because I have my personal webspace hosted by Sympatico (Rogers doesn't offer that at all), and the E-mail address that I've used for a long time for more important purposes is also on Sympatico.  I need to get a domain that will be independent of the service provider, and transition to that.  But Rogers has some phone service features that we want, which are significantly less expensive than we'd have to pay than with Bell.  We were assured that the switch-over, retaining my old phone number, would be simple.  No trouble.

( Rogers Rogers Rog-AAAarrghhh... )

There is sometimes the question: Which is worse, Bell or Rogers?  And I think that the only good answer is "Whichever of the two you had to deal with most recently."
 

I have an appointment tomorrow morning for a full-spinal MRI.  It's somewhat earlier in the morning than I'd like, but I'll take it.  Apparently there's some benefit to calling the booking office first thing on a Monday morning after they've been closed for four days for a one-day civic holiday.  (I asked the guy doing the booking if the hospital provided earplugs or other hearing protection, and he said "of course!"  When I told him that a friend of mine had had an MRI a few months ago and had not been provided with hearing protection, he was astonished.  I think I'll bring along a pair of earplugs anyway, just in case.)

I have a dishwasher full of water, and a call in to the guy who fixed my refrigerator a few months ago to see if he fixes old Maytag dishwashers.  If you have any recommendations for people to repair old Maytag dishwashers, please let me know.

I have a new bathing suit.  Unlike my old bathing suit, it isn't wearing through, and hasn't faded to a pale aquamarine which matches the colour of the sides and bottom of a swimming pool.  It should, therefore, not produce the (I am told) disconcerting impression that I have simply turned myself invisible from waist to mid-thigh.

I have had too little good sleep, and am feeling it in many ways.
 

I called the fridge-repair guy recommended by kattale . He and his assistant were here less than a day later, and fixed the problem quickly, and the price seemed quite reasonable. (kattale , he asked me to say hello to you.)

On the other hand... While he was moving the fridge out from its niche, he said something about "it must be female." I said "sorry, what was that?" and he replied that it was being cantakerous and not moving. I was slightly appalled, glanced at his (female) assistant, and said, "I don't think I want to go there." He replied that he was just poking his assistant.

After he'd moved the fridge out, I decided that I might as well clean the floor and wall in the niche -- not that they were particularly dirty, but I figured I should take the opportunity. I mentioned that I'd messed up my back a few months ago, wasn't sure how. He replied "Was she good, at least?" Nonplussed, I replied, "I wish."

So, yeah, I can recommend the guy for his work. Not so much for his conversation.

The oafish minions who reshingled my roof last autumn replaced the flashing around the chimney.  To do so, they pulled out the old flashing which was embedded in the mortar between the chimney bricks, and applied new flashing which is "surface-mounted", i.e. held in place with caulking.  The new flashing covers a smaller area than the old.  This left old and slightly-crumbly mortar, with cracks and gaps, exposed.

I could have hired someone to repoint the mortar.  My previous experience with getting someone to do masonry repair was not positive (as with most of the repair work I've paid people to do around here).  And considering my lack of employment, I decided that I could deal with it myself, save my money, and probably do as good a job.  My previous work with concrete and mortar went pretty well, though that was at ground level rather than way up high.  I have leftover concrete and mortar mix from that project.

I am not an acrophile.  I'm not acrophobic, either, but I don't enjoy being up tall ladders, crawling around on roofs, etc.  But I can do it when I have to.  I started by climbing up carefully and tying a rope to the chimney, to provide support and safety for later when I'd be bringing up tools and materials.

Of note:

• An electric drill with a masonry bit can be used to remove old mortar, in place of the traditional hammer and chisel.  It's probably more appropriate for small jobs like what I was doing, but it's a one-handed tool which doesn't require whacking away at brickwork while one is on a surface with less-than-ideal footing.
• A garden hose with a spray nozzle can be used in place of the traditional spray bottle to wash out bits of old mortar and to dampen brick surfaces, and doesn't need to be refilled.  Hauling it up the roof is a bit tricky.  Water running down the roof surface will make it more slippery, especially if the water is runoff from fresh mortar, which is alkaline.
• Even when one has the proper tools (thanks, ragnhildr !) and even though fresh mortar is somewhat caustic, it's sometimes faster and easier to take a handful of mortar and slap/rub it into place, then rinse off the surface, than to carefully work the mortar into the gaps and cracks it needs to be in.  Skin in contact with fresh mortar should be washed off with plenty of fresh water ASAP, of course, per the usual protocols for handling caustics.  Brief soaking in vinegar can also be used to help neutralize the caustic, but lots of fresh water should do the job.
• The oafish minions also didn't caulk the flashing properly; there are some gaps.  I'll need to back up there in a few days, after the mortar has set, to finish the job.  I left the rope tied to the chimney.

Really truly, don't hire companies whose names are misspelled.  "Millennium" has two 'l's, two 'n's.