Circumcism

Today we took RJ to be circumcised. The hospital where he was born did not do the procedure.  Know that it is not medically necessary, but I think long term he will be better off from a hygiene stand point. Sherry was a wreck. She could not stand the thought of her son hurting. 

Despite his parents being emotional wrecks, RJ was a real trooper. He was more annoyed y being strapped down to the exam table than the actual procedure. 

Three hours later he is wresting comfortably and hasn't really been very fussy, despite the morning activities. This guy is something else. 

A Heavenly Gift

On January 19th Robert Justin came into our lives. He is the answer to our prayers to be able to start a family. 

When I saw him for the first time in the hospital I had the same feeling as when I saw my beautiful wife walking down the aisle when we got married. He took my breath away. How could there be anything more precious. It is love at first sight. 

One week later RJ is watching us intently when we feed him. I wonder what he is thinking?  He changes every day and makes a new face with the cutest expressions. 

Right now he sleeps a lot. But that's because he is doing a great deal of growing every day. 

I am truly a very blessed man.  

Needs Improvement

Today I had my first one on one meeting with my new boss.  In June I was appointed area supervisor when my former supervisor was terminated.  During the meeting I was encouraged to learn more about how to think strategically and ask more "why do we need to do that" questions.  I'm eager to be a member of this management team and feel that I could offer a great deal to the success of our division.  But leaving the meeting I have never felt more like I just left a failed job interview.

Must look into how to become a better manager.

Too Much Stuff...

It has been a LOT harder to consolidate all my junk!  I have been holding on to too much stuff.

I recently read a blog post from a good friend who said that in order to make sure some of the big dream ideas come into reality she has to tell someone about that idea in order to feel the pressure of an imposed deadline ( Not a direct quotation and a bit of a paraphrasing)

Before I went to college XX years ago, I really didn't have that much junk to cart around.  I was still living at home and under my parents rules - which included not keeping too much stuff around my room.  If it didn't have a direct use or I had not used something for more than 6 months, out it went.

After I moved out following college I had a regression of sorts.  I found it extremely difficult to toss something if it looked like it might have some usefulness still left.  Jump forward a few years with no parental influence for getting rid of stuff, and now I am on my way to being a candidate for the "hoarders" programs on cable tv.  I don't want to be on that show.  SO... I must make a conscience decision to start tossing out junk or getting it listed on eBay so those precious items can become part of someone else's collection.

It has been sort of painful coming to grips with my collecting obsession.  It has also been financially draining. Before I got married I lived alone in a two bedroom townhouse.  The downstairs "public" area was neat, but the upstairs area and spare room were not. In fact I rented a storage space a few block from my townhouse to keep my stuff.  Americans like their stuff.  I think that's why there are so many storage places all over.  My rental grew to three units.  When I got married one of the concessions I had to make was that I would not fill up our home with junk.  On the surface I could agree with this concession. After all I really don't want to live in a pig pen and I don't want to subject my wife to that either. But that meant that all the things I had in the townhouse couldn't come live with us in out happy home.  I couldn't bring myself to throwing it all away so I expanded to another storage space to give my junk some place to live.

That all started five years ago.

Now, I want to get back into the business of having my own production company.  The times I spent running my own company were some of the happiest employment I have ever experienced.  I would like to bring some more of that job centered happiness back into my life.  Please don't read more into that statement than is there.  I am pleased with my 8-5 job.  The people are nice, the work is not difficult and the tasks are generally easy to accomplish and excel.  It's the night time job I have become bored with.  The climate and regulations have become almost too much for me to bear for even the little time I spend there.  There is no more esprit-de-corps any more.  All of the workers arrive like pre-programmed automatons and do their tasks when called upon.  The environment is oppressive and the work is tedious. I don't want to have that as part of my life any more.  I have a need to find something more spirit refreshing.  In my effort to develop something that will meet my developmental and "fun" requirements, I have stumbled upon an idea which blends some of my recreational activities with some of my professional talents.  The really great thing is that there is no one else in this area providing the service I am thinking about.  My only problem now is that I need some money to bring this idea to market.

CONCLUSION:

I have a lot of stuff.
I need some money to purchase some different stuff for the expansion of my production company.
I NEED to reduce/eliminate the clutter in my life in order to be able to focus on experiencing life with my wife.
I will sell the junk which has any value.
I WILL develop the business idea into a viable service.
I will replace the nighttime job with something better for me.
I will dedicate time to making memories with my wife.

Wish me luck.

-R

One shop to build it...

Its been TOO long since I have posted an update to this blog.  Recently I began to follow a friends blog site.  That person has established a discipline of writing every Friday.  Discipline is something I need more in my life.  So, in an effort to put some order back into my life.  I am picking TUESDAY to update this site.  I cannot promise that there will always be something interesting to read.  But come hell or high water, this location will receive new words every week.

I hope you enjoy.

AN UPDATE:

Finally,  I have secured a small workshop space not too far from home.  This is the beginning of the road to completion on the Spider.  I will post some pre-move in pictures. The goal is to set up a working space to make the repairs needed to the car. As with this site, I will have to become more disciplined to get the Spider back on the road.

Stay tuned...

Mid-Florida AROC Car Show

I posted a video of the trip to the car show.  It can be found on YouTube.  Let me know what you think.

Here is the link.

AROC 2010 Car Show

A new direction..

Today I took a look at my first post to this space and have had a change of heart concerning the direction of the Spider restoration. I had mentioned in the original post that I wanted to "bring the Spider into more of a modern condition..." After thinking about this direction over the past few years I think it would be a horrible mistake to alter the car in such a way. So, with that in mind, I will proceed in a direction to make the best (2010) 1969 model car I can afford. I will be keeping the original fuel injection system, the braking system, and keep the finishes as close to original as possible with the means I have available.

The goal to meet is to be able to bring the refurbished car to the 2011 Mid-Florida AROC car show.

I have a renewed spirit about completing this project and now have a hard deadline goal to reach.

Wish me luck and keep an eye here to see updates.

Take a look at some detail shots of the areas with some of the worse rust damage.

Inside rocker panel looking toward where the passenger side jack point USED to be located.

A closer look at the work of the Italian Rust Worm.

Viva Alfa Romeo

Just got back from Celebration, Florida where I got an opportunity to meet some great people and see some beautiful Italian cars.

Thanks Mid-Florida AROC for hosting the Viva Alfa Romeo Car Show 2010. I have gained some much needed inspiration to get my Spider project finished so that I can participate in show next year.

Stay tuned here to see some pictures and a short video presentation of the event.

Time goes by...

Another year has passed and still very little progress on the Alfa restoration. I have sourced some needed parts and have started "cleaning" the area around the car in the garage. If only our house had a two car garage and/or a workshop in the backyard to house some of the yard tools and other hardware collected over the years.

One of my neighbors is selling an older Mercedes four door. It's a 240D. One of the slowest cars on the road. Obtaining this car would put me more in line with the ideals I would like to pursue - reducing my dependance on commercial fuels. I would run the car on recycled fry oil.

It is about time that I put my environmental beliefs into action. I joined the Veggie Van organization today.

http://www.veggievan.org/

Missed deadline

The date is quickly approaching when I promised myself that my Italian car would be back on the road. Once again, I have disappointed myself with poor performance.

Msgr. William A Kerr

I attended Msgr. Kerr's funeral last week. The church was packed, standing room only. I imagine a few people were there because Roger Staubach gave the eulogy. What I saw on news that day only consisted of a fifteen second VO and a 15 sound bite from a football Hall of Fame member. What the local news didn't show was the wonderful story Roger told of a man who had a gift of making the person or people Monsignor was speaking to feel that they are the most important person at that moment. They didn't show Roger choking up over the thought of never having a post Thanksgiving meal discussion ever again. Hearing Mr. Staubach's eulogy made me realize why Msgr. Kerr kindly declined my family's invitation to Thanksgiving year after year. He was spending that time with his dear friends.

Msgr. Kerr practiced what he preached. He was an instrument of change. He was/is and example for the rest of us that an individual can and should try to make a difference. He was working to make our world a more peaceful place. I hope and pray that the progress for world wide peace he began will take root and flourish.

I will miss him greatly.

Memorial Day

Another Memorial Day has come and gone.

About twelve years ago Sherry and I took a day trip to St. George Island. The order of the day was to bring the Hobie Cat, sail to the bay side of the State Park, have a picnic, mess around on the boat a little, then back to town after a fun day in the sun. This would have been our third date and first "out of town" date. At least this was the plan.

The trip to the island was of no event. Normal drive towing the boat. I should have known that the day was not going to end well when I lost my sun glasses shortly after we launched the boat. We did circle back to find the Ray Bans. It was very bright on the water and I needed those glasses.

After finding the glasses we set sail and headed east toward the State Park. The air was slightly west of north and we had a good run to the park. On the way we saw a couple of dolphins, a sea turtle and some jumping mullet.

We beached the boat and broke out the lunch snacks. Sandwiches, some fruit and cheese and one of my favorites, Cheez-Its. Lunch was tasty. After eating we crossed over to the Gulf side to play around in the waves and do some body surfing. The waves were small and we ended up just swimming for a bit.

...continued in a bit...

Today on Campus

Today I'm monitoring the Florida Pre-Paid College Tuition board meeting. Not a regular event to take place here. TCC is hosting an event with FPCT later today and I think that's why their board is here this morning. The discussion has been centered around the investments and forecast for the funds that drive the FPCT plans. My involvement has been to record the audio portion and be ready to play back a DVD when called for presentation. One of the things that come to mind when I work the events in the board room is how much this room needs to be re-built and re-formatted. It wasn't too long ago that this control room was configured. Unfortunately, it needs to be re-done again after a full needs assessment is done for the events that do and may take place in this space.

Monticello Karting

There is a kart racing track in Monticello Florida. I have agreed to do some installation and editing work for the track owners. In exchange, I have gotten the unlimited use of a 125cc EasyKart. Here is a link to the track layout.

http://www.monticellokarting.com/track.html

Actual open wheel racing - on a reduced scale.

Garage Update

This weekend I attempted to gain access to my garage. I was thwarted and rebuffed. I will make a new asault this coming weekend.

a pissy weekend

This weekend I was feeling sort of low. Probably because there are so many "projects" on my to-do list leaving very little time to work on the projects that renew my soul. Like working on the the car or building something. So...this week it is my goal to clear out the area around the car in the garage so that I can actually start working. There is so much junk around the car it is impossible to get the doors open. NOW is the time to start throwing away some stuff!

A Friend...

Today I found a blog space for my favorite college room mate - Ed. After reading his posts I am touched at how much he loves his family and keeps a positive outlook while having to help his son work through cancer treatments.


I am looking forward to reading more of his postings.

Garage Space

The car has been moved into the garage along with all the other detritus one collects over many years of collecting. Therefore, I have no room to work on the car at this time. This project has been temporarily put on hold. I am depressed.

Yesterday was my birthday. I WILL get the car back on the road before my next birthday - 363 days from today.

Rust

Last night I put together a set of wheel dollies purchased from Harbor Freight. Despite the low cost, the units were on sale, the construction is of higher than expected quality.

After putting the dollies together I was able to move the Alfa around the driveway with a little effort. In addition to the added mobility, I was able to see the underside and rocker panels better and facilitating more pictures - posted here.







While taking pictures of the passenger side rocker panel, fenders, and door skins, I also checked for the extent of the rust. There is rust and I am sure I can beat it.

As you can see there is rust. Fortunately it is not so bad as to force abandonment of the project.

The Project

Wednesday 28 November 2007

Today I started this Blog page with the intention of posting my progress on a restoration project of a 1969 1750 Alfa Romeo Spider.

What has prompted me to get started is notice from my homeowners association indicating that I needed to... "Do something with the MG like primer colored vehicle in the driveway." Looks like this project needs to get into gear.

I purchased this Alfa a couple years ago from a gentleman in California whose wife was not happy with his project taking too long to complete. Now that I have had the car for a couple years and have had time to research the parts necessary to bring the car to the level I want, the project must make some headway.

The project is rather ambitious. The car appears to be complete with all the normal rust spots for an Alfa Romeo. Here's what needs to be done. The pictures below show the condition of the car when it arrived.

• Sheet metal and bodywork

• Rocker Panels
• All floor panels
• Nose cone - with appropriate bump aligned with grill
• Rear wheel well arches
• Front wheel well arches
• Jack points
• Straighten and align trunk lid
• Repair trunk hinges
• Fabricate trunk latch - Any photos of working latches would be appreciated
• Find nearby location to acid dip body to strip off all paint and filler
  

• Suspension, brakes and wheels
  
• Remove all suspension parts and inspect - replace if necessary
• Have all metal suspension and brake parts powder coated
• Replace worn shocks
• Rebuild brake master cylinder
• Rebuild brake vacuum boosters - re-coat with appropriate finish
• Replace hard brake lines
• Replace flexible brake lines with braided SS
• Replace front rotors with vented discs
• Refinish "TURBINA" wheels - mount new Michelin tires

• Interior
• Remove seats, dash, rubber floor mats, top bows, steering wheel, door panels and all trim
• Powder coat seat parts
• Have seats redone by local shop - black leather
• Install wood steering wheel and wooden shift knob
• Install sound deadening mat on floor and door panels
• install carpet set for front and back
• Powder coat top bows and helper springs
• Replace all rubber seals for doors, windows, trunk and hood
  

• Engine
• Test compression and perform leak down
• Remove all components from engine compartment - prepare for paint
• Pressure test radiator - re-core if necessary
  
• Remove Spica injection system
• Install Weber electronic fuel injection
• Replace ignition system with electronic ignition from RML
  
• Port match European manifold to Weber throttle bodies
• Install remote oil filter and cooler - fabrication required
• Replace all fluid lines with aircraft grade lines and connections
• Replace header with new
• Move battery to trunk

• Climate Control
• Remove heater coil - refurbish if necessary
• Install custom AC from Frigette
• Compressor to reside in place of SPICA fuel injection pump
• Replace vent tubes

• Finish
• Crinkle coat paint on valve cover
• Paint brake calipers with brake paint
• Refinish all bright work
• Grind and polish all aluminum parts
• Paint body in original Ivory color