Graduation Night for Susan

Last night was Susan’s dinner reception for her and all her fellow classmates in the Seattle Pacific University’s Administrative Credential Program. She’s been working full time and plugging away at it for a year now and we’re all very proud of her accomplishment. She’ll be done on June 9^th and I’m pretty sure I can speak for the entire family when I say we’re glad it’s (almost) over. The dinner was very good from start to finish. Salad, dinner roll, main course, pie for dessert and coffee. 

Here’s Susan with her mentor Mary Pachek accepting her certificate.  Susan’s not in any hurry to jump into the Principal role and will be hanging back for a year to see what comes up within the Steilacoom School District. But since both girls will be done with High School there's nothing keeping her from looking elsewhere. We shall see.

The Commuter

I was replacing the rear brake calipers on my Redline commuter last night and I couldn't get the wheel to stay in place after putting everything back together. I noticed the inside of the dropout on the drive side was worn from the axle nut rubbing.

This is supposed to be a flat surface, but apparently my wheel has been shifting about for some time. Could it be from the Hercules strength in my legs? : ) I took it to the bike shop and they immediately said it was un-repairable. I'm pretty handy in most of the vocational trades, so I took his answer as a challenge and stopped by Home Depot on the way home and bought a 3/4" grinding stone. 

I made a jig out of a piece of hardwood to keep the stone in place while I hand ground the bad portion until I thought it was deep enough to accept a make shift bushing. I used a block of wood with a shallow 1/4" hole in it to apply the down force needed to remove the aluminum. 

Here's the result of the grinding with a picture of the bushing made from a washer. I mixed up some heavy duty epoxy, glued it in place and clamped it down for the night. I guess I didn't file the throat open enough because when I pulled the wheel off  for inspection the following day the bushing came off with the wheel. 

I did a little more grinding on the drop out and used JB Weld this time. I'll find out tomorrow if my garage machine work saved the frame. I pulled clamp off after work, filed a few more areas and this is the final product. My test rides proved to be successful, but the next two days will be the true test and if all goes well I'll be riding it on Sunday for the PMC.  A fellow commuter at work will be joining me for the 100K ride. 

Friday Project

A couple friends and I shared the cost of a Power Rake/Thatcher on Friday and we each spent the day chasing the thing around our respective lawns and then raking up the aftermath. Bek helped out with the raking portion and I really appreciated her being out there. Raking grass is almost as bad as shoveling snow and both have heart attack written all over them.

I made use of my motorcycle ramp to get the grass into the back of the truck using the wheel barrel and I was fortunate with the disposal because Wyatt's neighbor let me use his composting pit. 

Bek and I were lucky the fashion police didn't stop by because we both would have been ticketed. 

Single Speed Commuter

I broke a spoke on my multi-speed bike a little over a week ago, so I've been riding my newly acquired single speed cross bike to and from work. I was a little hesitant at first, but I'm really starting to enjoy the spinning on the flats and the cranking on the hills. I may even put some road tires on it for a smoother ride?

Prom Night

Saturday was Prom night for Bek and all of her Senior classmates. Her and a friend went to dinner and then to the Tacoma Convention Center for a little dancing, snacking and having fun with other friends. 

 

Bek with some of her friends

and just being the cool person she is. 

Grease

Bek performed in Grease last week for her last High School play and she played the part of Patty Simcox to the tee. Susan and I went to 3 out of 4 shows and the last one is always the best because the kids throw some improv in and really the crowd laughing. This was by far the best play the school has performed in a long time. 

Patty herself would be proud. 

Getting fresh with Danny.

Getting down with Eugene 

and getting hugs from her Aunt Janet and Judith. 

Happy Mother's Day

The girls and I took Susan out for a Mother's Day breakfast to a place Bek found on the Internet called the New Moon Cafe' in Olympia. The reviews said get there early and be patient, very patient. We arrived shortly after they opened the doors and it's a good thing too because service was so slow a customer next to us stood up, grabbed the coffee carafe and went around to several tables filling cups until it was empty. Seeing her get up to self serve made me feel confident to do the same with the water pitcher, but only for us. It didn't take long for the place to fill up and leave customers in wait outside the door. The food was okay and I would go back again, but I wouldn't wait as long as others did today. 

Picture from the outside. 

We all thought the toothpick dispenser was pretty cool. 

Our dinner consisted of food from the heart, but not necessarily good for it. Steak, baked potato, corn on the cob and ICB. We went to Black Bear for desert and put the done stamp on eating for the night.  

  

New Front Tire

Bummer! I didn't even get two years of riding from this thing. I tried putting a couple layers of duct tape on the inside, but between the cut and the bead separating not letting it seat properly, I broke down and bought the same tire I have on the rear. A Bontrager H5 Hardcase Ultimate 700x32. It has some tread to it to spread the water and provide some traction as well as a dual layer sub tread to help prevent punctures.

I hope to get at least three years from it. 

Bicycle Art

My job took me up north to Port Townsend and on the way back I saw a Bike Shop sign. Being an avid rider, I decided to stop and take a look. Scott was the owner and he had been there for the over 15 years. He's off the beaten path, but has survived longer than any of the other shops in town that have come and gone. Pulling into the 2 spot parking lot, I discovered the secret to his success. Not only does he repair bikes, he turns them into pieces of art work. I forgot to add Scott's website Williwaw Studio
Take a look at work:

Now this is hill climbing.

Sunday stroll.

Good pace line. 

Solo rider on a sole wheel. 

This is my next road bike. 

The guy is pretty talented in many ways. He also had some chairs carved out of some very large logs with several coats of lacquer applied.