Butterflies

So fall is here. A little Gulf Fritillary landed on my porch (as they often do im the fall)... and let me get up close.

I took some pictures and let him/her go... (though it didn't really leave... it might have been damaged, though I could not see anything wrong, or simply his or her time to die. Still it let me take pictures, so in its own way leaving a legacy off sorts.

Augustus...

This picture embodies everything about our littlest one. She looks a little mischievous, but sweet, you see her hair, she doesn't care about that. She can make your heart melt and piss you off the next minute, then make you laugh again. This one is going to be trouble.

The Pennsylvania Trip

Well, the vacation was a mixed bag. We got to see some things, we got exposed to different cultures, we also caught some nasty bug up there and we came home with everyone sick. That part, really sucked, but I guess it happens to all of us. Looking back at the photos, I guess we had a nicer time than I remember. The negative and the last thing is remembered more than the positive. At least for me. Here are the pics:

 Ricketts Glen, a state park that has some spectacular waterfalls.

Like this one

Or this one, that the teenager is trying demonstrate how not to fall from a waterfall...

Here Songbird spots a place to call her own.

Then we went to Steamtown... a national park (who knew?)

Next we are at Kirby park to celebrate the 4th... and so was everyone else...

No doubt to see Augustus in stickers...

Or maybe it was the fireworks show.

On to Hershey Park, plenty of roller coasters and lines and mascots to keep you busy all day.

And the occasional race car ride...

And more mascots... This one with almost the whole family...

Overall it was a trip that I think nobody will forget... I won't anyway, we got to see a lot and do even more. I'm glad we went and even gladder we have these photos to remember how much we did...

Vinnie Van GoGo's

We originally went to the Second Line restaurant in downtown Savannah (but since the place was closed for the second weekend  in a row) we instead went to Vinnie Van GoGo's. I have to say this place is a dump, but the pizza is so good, plus they have cheap beer. They pretty much have the best pizza in the area. 

Hand tossed of course.

And here it is. It was so good, I quickly forget all about the silly dang Second Line.

Sunrise

We decided to catch a sunrise as we keep telling the Songbird about them, however unless you see it... it's just not the same. So off to the island we went. And we had no idea it would turn into a nature expedition. Fist off was this crab. Which (after scouring the internet) is a spider crab or a doubtful spider crab.

Next we saw a sand dollar. Still alive, we looked at it, I showed the Songbird all of its "feet" and tossed it back into the water.

Back to the crab, or a different crab (same species, just a bit smaller) and it liked eating dead jellyfish.

Finally, we have the sunrise we were looking for. Beautiful as always.

The Trip to Atlanta

So I am here in Atlanta. And I have to say, we paid a pretty penny to stay where we are, but I have no regrets thus far. I’m right across the street from Olympic Park. I could ask for better weather but what are you gonna’ do? Day one consisted of driving from Bluffton to Atlanta and going to Fernbanks Museum. So far so good.

The next day would be a whirlwind. We got up earlier than we needed to so we were about an hour earlier to Zoo Atlanta than it opened, Since it had a park right next to it, we walked around, and came across a crayfish (crawfish if you happen to be from Louisiana). We thanked him for the entertainment and put him back in the water (I hope that is where he wanted to go). When the zoo opened, we saw gorillas, panda bears, lion(s), tigers, and bears (oh my) as well as a variety of other stuff birds, reptiles, and smaller mammals.

It was fun and we did not get rained on, but the sky was dark and dreary, and it looked like the bottom could fall out at any minute. We had lunch at the Varsity. I wanted to show my kids how big the place is, and they were amazed.

Next we went to the aquarium and I must say I was impressed with the size and scope of it all. It is one big aquarium, but not better than seeing the one in Charleston or New Orleans. But it is big. And the lines to get in this place were equally staggering. We got to skip this because we got the CityPass, I would say it was worth it just by getting to jump the line alone.

It was still raining and rather cold outside. We decided to pack up our Atlanta vacation a day early. But we still had a CNN tour and a World of Coke on our itinerary. The CNN tour was a nice learning experience (and a really long escalator) but I don’t think I would buy it by itself. The World of Coke was equally nice, they had many drinks and a bunch of nostalgia but really pay $15 for the thing? I think not.

The whole vacation was a great idea, that is until the weather turned yucky which it turned before we even left. And it wasn’t just bad in Atlanta, everywhere in the south had it pretty much the same, cold and wet… so not the spring break we had envisioned. Still it was good, we saw the zoo and aquarium and Fernbanks and CNN and World of Coke. We stayed at the Omni which is right there next to CNN, and they had a huge food court (it was ok, not real good or bad… just ok), which was where we ate every meal minus the Varsity trip. It was great fun and very educational, really a something for everyone kind of trip. I'm glad we went and maybe (just maybe) we will go again, sooner rather than later...

Turkeys!!! ... Again

I woke up to the songbird, talking to the turkeys... yeah not really, but she did (rather loudly) say hey, look turkeys! But something strange happened. There was a buzzard in the mix (not pictured, he flew away while I got the camera) and the turkeys were trying to fight with it. Right there in my backyard. The buzzard apparently had enough and flew away, though I have no idea why it was there to begin with.

Yep, this must be at or close to mating season. You can see the boys are all pumped up, showing their feathers and generally strutting around.

Here we see it was time to go, no more looking at turkeys. And thus the turkey flew away, although, not so much the males. The females took to the air, while the males were willing to just walk/run a short distance. Male ego involved? Maybe.

Oh No... Spend More Money

So... on top of the troubles with the teenager, the sickness of Songbird, and the just being of the baby, and my wife's after-school school to become someone of administration, my AC breaks... again. The AC of the house, not the car (which broke twice last summer). The same AC I thought was giving me trouble when it was cold outside (heat pump). So I enlisted the help of a friend, since he works on this sort of thing all the time. First we check the start capacitor. It is what helps high amperage things get started... almost like a battery, it holds an amount of a charge, then when the motor comes on it empties giving the motor just what it needs. it is a $3-10 part. the one on my compressor worked just fine. Dang!!!

So with that, the least expensive and easiest to fix item, was off the list. I turned on the AC at the request of my friend, and he says (and I already had a sinking suspicion) that the actual fan motor had gone... which was not the end of the world, but it was a bit more involved. Still all and all I'm only out $130 bucks $95 (I just picked up the motor), instead of who knows how much if I would have called a repairman (probably $300 minimum) and this is something I need to keep telling myself, as I have yet to complete this task.

I have the old motor removed, the new motor ready to be put in, and of course it is in the 60's, which means I won't get the "oh honey, you saved us" from the wife if it were 80+ degrees outside, but all things considered, I don't really need that anyway. Don't get me wrong, it would be nice, but not necessary.

Here we see our culprit, the outside portion of a split system heat pump. It is working now, but it wasn't before. I have enclosed photos so that maybe if you have the same problems you too can go get the parts and fix it yourself. But if you should make sure you can handle it and it would help if you had someone in the know around. I went to Fox Appliance Parts for the parts. They do not have a web presence but their number is: (912) 234-0911. ‎

This is the part that went south. How do I know this? Well, on my particular unit it was either this or the start capacitor. We checked the capacitor, which was good, barring that you may not have a capacitor checker, a voltmeter with that option, I would go ahead and buy a new motor anyway, as it cost me $95, and they threw in a start capacitor anyway (for an additional $3) Also in my instance there was a bit of slop in the old motor, you could grab the shaft and wiggle it around, with a new motor you won't be able to do that.

Here we have the new motor (with the fan blade on it... it was the same fan blade, I took this picture after the fact) See that little silver box at the bottom of the picture? That is the start capacitor... you need to make sure before you go poking and prodding that this is discharged. What does that mean? You need to short out across the leads with something metal, like a screwdriver. Otherwise, if you short out the leads with a hand or arm or anything connected to your body, you will become a fireworks show... not fun.

Ok I have it mounted back on to the grill. I should say this took the longest. Cutting the threaded screw wire down to size was a pain. During this portion I would recommend a 2nd person that knows what needs to happen, understands how it happens... or not the help of a teenager, as it was not very much help at all. My wife came to help and it all went a lot smoother from that point on

Ok this is the point where I am just about to put the fan back in. You can see the innards of the AC and the copper piping the carries freon. It is also where you need to make sure nothing is hitting or coming into contact with the fan. I had to loosen the fan and push it a tad bit back, also make sure your wiring is good, not in the way, through the right holes, etc.

From this point all that was needed was a place to mount the capacitor, we opted for a hot glue gun, and stuck it where we could fit it.All that remained is to tighten the screws and turn the system on. I have the ability to heat/cool my home again... at a much more affordable price too.

The Glorious Warmth

The days of frigid cold are behind us now (hopefully) and my two younger kids are busting at the seems to get outside and go to the park.

Here you see Augustus mid-slide... this kid likes the park, likes to swing, loves to slide, look at her, she is on a mission to give her dad (me) heart failure.

Here you see Songbird and Augustus... with Augustus intent on getting down the slide and back up again, it is what she does. This photo was taken the very next day. Songbird poses, Augustus just wants to slide, slide, and slide again.(notice her tongue hanging out in all the pictures, sort of like a dog... it is all good)

For the Birds

Over this past weekend, I felt a little more spring like. Lord knows the birds thought it was... it got up to 55ish nice day, NO bugs (mainly because I think they all froze over the past week) no rain, it was, for all intents and purposes a really great day. A great day to watch some birds in the backyard.

Here the Songbird shows she is ready and has the right equipment (binoculars) to look at some birds...

There was a hawk or eagle, but I barely caught him. I wish I had a more zoomier lens but alas it was not to be...

Blue Birds... Very pretty, I love this bird, I don't know why.

Hooded Merganser, these birds are very pretty and apparently very common. The female lacks the black and white markings of the male, but has a weird fan shaped head.

The White Ibis. These are fairly common too (in fact all of the birds are pretty common) they seems "up to something"...

They along with the Egrets, and a Great Blue Heron were all along the perimeter, waiting for the Hooded Merganser to catch a fish, and then they would try to steal it. Sometimes it would work, other times, not so much.

Christmas Vestiges

This past Christmas was LOADED with presents. And while I like me a good gift, I like good company even better. Not everyone came (due to the blizzard up north) but almost everyone came, and it was nice...

Turkeys!!!

The other day I was looking in my backyard... and a flock of turkeys paraded their way across my yard, around the pond. It was crazy, I know people who hunt for wild turkey, they have camo and various calls and whatever else... I know you have to be absolutely quiet if you go turkey hunting. Yet here we have at least 30 turkeys coming right by house...

And this is just what we got with the camera, there was even more, like some strange turkey version of the twilight zone. Crazy birds...