House 2: concrete porch and sidewalk, kitchen floor, UV light install ; stairway re-build ; More Africa research

(posted from home)
(This post covers 22 – 31 July, 2011)

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Sunday, 31 July -

Today I continued online reading about Botswana and South Africa. In the afternoon I rode the GS down to Rudy Park for a walk. I walked the 5K course in the 94-degree heat, thankful for the shade along portions of the route.
That evening we watched the Ethiopia segment on the National Geographic 'Africa' series on Netflix.

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Saturday, 30 July -

Today I continued with my research for the Africa trip, spending much of my time viewing YouTube video clips people made in the areas we'll be traveling. Today my interest was in water crossings, mud, and deep sand in Toyota Hi-Lux pickups like we'll be renting. I also saw several clips on the bush campsites and wilderness campsites in areas we'll be visiting.
After awhile I needed a break so rode the GS down to the Salvation Army store looking for a couple of bland-color tee shirts for the trip (but had no luck). I then hit the Tollgate Starbucks and read the Times, then took the long way home, stopping at the East York gun shop just to see what's in the used-gun inventory these days, then riding down to Long Level and back. It was a specTACular day at Long Level. Sailboats and kayaks, green grass, blue sky, clear water, Rob Evans artwork on display at Shank's Mare.
That evening we watched two 'Good Wife'- Season One episodes.

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Friday, 29 July -

This morning I researched the subject of traveler's diarrhea for our trip. I then rode over to the new Wal-mart and bought over-the-counter drugs for it as well as some emergency dental supplies and two of the N95 masks for the flight. I also picked up two more 16 GB chips for the new camera.
Back home I researched and ordered some traveler's wallets via Amazon.
That evening we watched the rainforest segment on the National Geographic 'Africa' series.

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Thursday, 28 July -

Today was a recovery day for me. I researched the d-Phenothrin insecticide spray used on South African Airways flights and researched protective masks to buy for our trip. We'll need N95-rated masks but they're available at Lowe's and Home Depot and are quite inexpensive. I'm not at all sure they're necessary but I'd rather have them along and not need them than vice-versa. The World Health Organization approves use of this insecticide for this purpose but of course there are always the details-- it's not abundantly clear that it's completely safe, particularly for asthma sufferers.
I also took a fun-ride down to Starbucks just to get out on the F650GS a bit.
That evening we began a seven-part National Geographic series on Africa. Tonight's episodes were about the savannah and sahara desert in the north of the continent.

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Wednesday, 27 July -

Today Orat and I rebuilt the basement stairway, replacing the old 2x4 tread with new yellow-pine treads and white-pine risers and enclosing the sides with a safety railing. We finished up by about 1300 and it was then I remembered there was yet another job I had for Orat. We drove out to Lowe's and bought a storm door and installed it on the front doorway.
We broke for supper at 1700 and afterwards Orat left on his five-hour drive home and I left for my two-hour drive home.

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Tuesday, 26 July -

Orat and I were on our own today but that didn't seem to slow him down! We first finished fitting the vinyl floor and glued it in place. We then turned our attention to the UV light installation in the basement. By lunch time we had the light mounted and tested and only had one small leak to fix after lunch.
That afternoon we planned out the basement stairs and picked up the materials at Lowe's. That evening Maypo took us to his wood-working shop and we cut the stair treads and risers to length and ripped plywood and 2x6's for the stairway safety railings.

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Monday, 25 July -

This morning we knocked the forms off the front porch and turned our attention to the 17-foot-long-by-3-foot-wide sidewalk. I made a run to Lowe's for more pre-mix while Orat and Maypo began mixing and pouring.
After we finished the sidewalk, we moved the mixer to the carport and poured into the forms Orat and Maypo had made up for a concrete step and a 4x4 replacement cap for the well-house. After supper we again came back to finish the troweling and sweep-finish.

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Sunday, 24 July-

Today we finished building forms and made a run to Lowe's for 20 bags of pre-mix. While Orat and Maypo built sidewalk forms, I worked inside on the vinyl flooring, measuring and laying out to fit the odd shape of the kitchen.
That afternoon we poured the concrete of the porch and began the finishing process. We worked until 1800 or so, then made two visits in the evening to trowel and sweep the surface to make a non-slip finish.
That afternoon Maypo also planned out the UV light installation and we made a trip to Lowe's to buy the plumbing parts for it.

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Saturday, 23 July -

Today Labashi and I decided to make the long drive to Chambersburg in separate cars since she will have to return a day or two early for an appointment next week. With hyper-productive Orat in town I want to take advantage of all the time we can get from him so it's well worth it to me to work with him as long as he can stand it.
I had to make a few stops along the way so I left earlier than Labashi. I stopped at Home Depot to pick up a Mini-Pure ultraviolet light and at Lowe's to pick up some boards to make stakes for our concrete forms. I also then had to run out to Sam's Flooring in St. Thomas to pick up two more pieces of exterior-grade lauan for the kitchen floor.
That afternoon was a very hot one but Maypo and Orat (and, to a lesser extent, I) worked on the concrete forms for the front porch. Maypo used the tractor scoop to peel back the lawn turf and remove a large high spot in the front yard. He then brought several scoops of river-rocks up from the woods to fill in the porch's block foundation we had built several weeks ago. Then we built forms and set up our concrete mixer and gathered all the tools we'd need in the morning.


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Friday, 22 July -

I caught up the online blog today and prepared for this weekend's work session with Orat, Maypo, and Labashi. The wheel problem with Mocha Joe turned out to be a stuck caliper and, fortunately, it didn't do any more damage. I still had a $200+ bill for replacement calipers, brakes, and the labor but counted myself lucky.
I drove the van down to West York Wal-mart today for an oil change. Once again, I had a problem there. The garage guy wrote me up for the special Mobil One oil I like but after they drained the crankcase they found they didn't have the oil in stock. I settled for a different weight and, because I had been thinking of trying this one anyway, didn't make a fuss. But I do have to be more careful. All I'd have had to do was check for the oil on the shelves and I could have avoided this. That sounds like going out of my way for something they should routinely do but the oil I like is indeed difficult to find consistently. I should have thought to look.



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House 2: bathroom and basement work ; medical prep for Africa trip

(posted from home)
(This post covers 13 to 21 July, 2011)

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Thursday, 21 July-

Today we had to go in to Memorial Hospital to have our TB tests checked. Labashi wanted to have lunch at Texas Roadhouse today but they're not open at lunch time on weekdays. I got on the web to find an alternative and saw listings for La Casa de Tapas in downtown York. Once I saw they have gazpacho on the menu, I was interested and knew Labashi would be too.
That turned out to be a great find. We not only had the gazpacho, we also had ceviche, fried goat-cheese, fried plantains, home-made breads (with olive oil and Balsamic vinegar dip) and both red and white sangrias. I guess we over-did it (especially for a lunch) but we certainly did enjoy this very nice little restaurant.
We then drove on to the hospital's Industrial Resource Center to have our TB tests checked. This part of the process is establishing a baseline before our trip.
We then went to the East-side Wal-mart to pick up our malaria-prevention prescriptions. They only had enough pills on hand to fill one of our prescriptions but will have the other filled by tomorrow.
While at the Wal-mart I had a chance to look for a small camera for our trip. I really liked one I saw but of course needed more info from the Web. Back home I was pleasantly surprised to find that this model-- the Canon SX230 HS-- is rated very highly by multiple digital-camera review sites. I think I may have found just what we need.
Oh, yeah. On the way home we stopped at the local Toyota dealer to look over a Tacoma 4-door pickup. The Tacoma is the US version of the Toyota 'HiLux' pickup we'll be renting in Africa (the HiLux is diesel-powered and right-hand drive, though). We happened to get a very friendly sales guy who wasn't put off by the fact that we weren't really there to buy and in fact was very interested in our trip. He did a very thorough job of introducing us to the various Tacoma options, trim-levels, and features. Nicely done, sir.
That evening we watched 'United States of Tara' episodes.

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Wednesday, 20 July-

More medical stuff today. We're not feeling any ill effects from the vaccines though our arms are a bit stiff and sore at the needle sites. I rode the Concours up to my dentist's office for the insertion of a crown this morning.
In the extra-hot afternoon weather I took the F650GS over to my tax-prep person to drop off a form and then spent the rest of the afternoon catching up the blog.
That evening we resumed watching 'The Good Wife'- Season One episodes.

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Tuesday, 19 July -

Today our main objective was to get our immunizations for the Africa trip. We spent the entire afternoon at Memorial Hospital in York. A doctor gave us minor physicals and then we reviewed the CDC immunization recommendations for travel to South Africa and Botswana. We then were both given immunizations for Hep-A, Hep-B, and yellow fever, plus prescriptions for typhoid and malaria pills as well as a TB baseline test.
That evening we watched a documentary called '21Up Africa: Mandela's Children'. This film series follows the fortunes and misfortunes of seven South Aftrican children at seven-year intervals. The subjects were drawn from very different backgrounds and it's quite interesting to see how they've grown and changed.
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Monday, 18 July -

This morning I installed the replacement wall-telephone jack after repairing the wall with Plaster Patch. I also once again 'fixed' the front and carport doors. These fir doors expand so much in the heat and humidity that they begin sticking so badly that they have to be kicked open.
Labashi finished up the repair and painting work to the medicine cabinet and light fixture in the bathroom. We then pulled nails, cleaned, and sanded the vintage baseboard trim and toe strip and Labashi gave them a coat of paint.
By 1500 we were wiped out. We loaded up Labashi's car and headed home. Along the way we shopped at the Home Depot for a replacement toilet seat to match the new color scheme.
We arrived home around 1800 and settled in quickly, then watched the final two episodes of 'Shaka Zulu'.

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Sunday, 17 July-

This morning I finished the vanity's plumbing and we turned on the water. We had a leak in one of the compression fittings and that took several tries to resolve. The soft-copper pipe had been bent, so that took it a bit out-of-round and the compression fitting didn't like that. After futzing with it for awhile I called Maypo for ideas and he came over and got it done.
In the meantime Labashi had re-started our basement-painting project. Maypo and I joined her for an afternoon paint-party and we the basement walls its second and final coat of Drylok Extreme.
The dehumidifier has been working overtime but did have the basement down around 50% humidity. The number climbed to 69% while we painted but by the next morning was back down to $50.
That evening we went to dinner with Maypo and his wife at Norland Pub, then we reaturned to watch the last two eps of 'Nurse Jackie, Season Two'

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Saturday, 16 July-

We re-installed the toilet and installed the new bathroom vanity today. I had cut off the water pipes leading into the bathroom because of the old-style copper-to-chrome transitions so needed to extend the water pipes up through the floor using short lengths of copper and compression fittings. While I worked on that Labashi disassembled and cleaned the light fixture above the medicine cabinet and gave the cabinet a very thorough cleaning.
We then set the vanity in place and I leveled it and bolted it down, then added the sink/top. We had hoped to turn water on today but I wasn't quite ready by the end of the day.
We watched more 'Treme', Season One that evening.

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Friday, 15 July -

Today we worked on the bathroom floor in House 2. Last week I had cut OSB subfloor sections to fit the floor's odd shape and today used them as a pattern to cut lauan plywood as underlayment for the sheet-vinyl flooring material. We used the lauan pattern to cut the sheet-vinyl. I then screwed down the OSB and stapled down the lauan. We then final-fit the vinyl and glued it down.
I made the mistake of using the wrong trowel-notch size so we had an excessive amount of adhesive pushed out around the edges. It was just a bit messy to clean up and then make a final clean-up pass with Goof-Off solvent. Lookin' good!
That evening we watched two episodes of 'Treme'- Season One in our TV room (lawn chairs in front of the laptop balanced on an paint bucket).

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Thursday, 14 July -

This morning my task was to drink a gallon and a half of water and a pint of less-than-pleasant oral contrast solution to prep for my now-yearly CT scan of my kidneys. I had the first pint of contrast last night and then had an intravenous injection of another contrast while on the scanner table. Scans were done before and after the IV contrast. All this to get the best look possible at a growth and (hopefully) confirm that it has not grown significantly.
On the way home I decided to get Mocha Joe washed for our trip to Chambersburg later today. But as I soaped up the left-front wheel, I heard a hissing sound and saw steam. The wheel and aluminum hubcap were very hot. After finishing the wash job I took the van home and jacked up the left-front end and tried turning the wheel. It would only turn a short distance; there's definitely something wrong.
I took it up to the garage and found them very busy and unable to get to the van until early next week. Labashi and I thought it over a bit and decided we could still go to Chambersburg but we'll have to sleep in the house. So of course we had to take air mattresses and a whole car-load of 'stuff'.
On the way to C-burg we stopped at Gettysburg for Labashi to try some shoes she had found on the web (the company has an outlet store in Gettysburg).
We made it to Chambersburg around supper time so hit the Fuddrucker's for a burger before going on to the house and setting up our bedroom for the next few days.
We then watched two episodes of 'Treme' DVD on the laptop, sitting on folding camp chairs. Ah, the joys of the mobile life!

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Wednesday, 13 July -

Today I continued looking through various online forums related to travel in southern Africa. Some contain trip reports, crime reports, reports of animal attacks (or rumors thereof) and they make compelling reading for us.
I've just finished reading 'The Lost World of the Kalahari', a late-Fifties account of a search for 'authentic' Bushmen, now known as the San. This one pulled no punches in explaining the sorry history of white interactions with the San. And I particularly enjoyed the detailed explanations of the preparations for, and journey into, the wilds of Botswana (then Bechuwanaland) in the search of remnants of the San people living in the traditional ways.
Late in the morning I realized I had better mow the lawn since we'll be gone for a few days. I used Labashi's self-powered mower and it worked very well. I was able to mow all in one go of a little over two hours. And so I don't need my walk today!
While Labashi drove up to see how the parental units are doing today, I recovered from my mowing by reading through online accounts of camping in lion and hyena country. I also browsed through websites of various private and public campgrounds to get a sense of price and facilities. One problem I hadn't thought about until now was the problem of noise from other campers. I had envisioned us camping alone most of the time but we'll be in the tail end of the high season there so I need to expect some minor problems.
That evening we watched two more episodes of 'Shaka Zulu', the 1986 mini-series.


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Visitors for the weekend ; trip research ; medical appointments

(posted from home)
(This post covers 1 – 12 July, 2011)

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Tuesday, 12 July -

Today we slept in a bit (just till 0800) but the kids slept in until 1000. We sat around drinking coffee and talking until the kids got up and then our guests packed up and left on their three-hour trip home.
Labashi went back to her parents' apartment to pick up Dad for a medical appointment and I chased down the oral-contrast drink I'll need to take before my CT scan Thursday.
That afternoon I caught up the blog and we watched a 'Shaka Zulu' episode.

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Monday, 11 July -

Today we all got up early. Labashi had to take her dad to a medical appointment for most of the day so after I dropped off the fishermen I took sis to the beach area to relax. I then ran some errands for an hour or so, then rejoined the fishermen. I was surprised to learn that they were doing very, very well. They had already caught about 50 fish. The fish were all sunnies but that was perfect. The kids were amazed that they could catch fish even on an empty hook. All they had to do was dangle it on the surface and a sunny would jump on the hook!
We finally tore the kids away from fishing at 1330 and joined Sis for a swim. We spent the rest of the day hanging out there. Labashi joined us around 1500 and at least had a few hours of down-time.
Back home we ordered a pizza and spent the evening laughing and talking.

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Sunday, 10 July -

Today our visitors arrived and settled in by mid-afternoon. I took the guys a tour of the local fishing spots while Labashi spent some quality time with her sister.
That evening we went out to dinner at Hillside. Afterwards I drove us to the local Gravity Hill. Our guests loved it and I was once again amazed at how strong the sensation is. As you pull up to the stop sign it's very clear to all that the car is headed downhill. But when I put the car in neutral and step off the brake pedal, we drift backwards... and we don't just drift backwards, the car accelerates. We tried it a few times and talked about what could be happening.

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Saturday, 9 July -

I failed to get my blood test done by today's deadline for my yearly CT scan next week. I made a few calls this morning and found a lab open on Saturdays. I buzzed over to a lab in Emigsville shortly after they opened at 0800 and found about 25 people ahead of me! The wait turned out to be a little over an hour, though, and the process itself was quick and painless.
I then took a tour of local fishing spots in preparation for our visitors tomorrow to see what current conditions are. This weekend is a hot one so I don't expect much in the way of fishing success, though.
After checking out Pinchot Park, I walked for an hour and a half from the dam.
That evening we watched 'Milking the Rhino', a great documentary for our Africa trip. It describes the efforts of governments to encourage local communities to set up game reserves and safari lodges for tourists. But is this really best for local communities or just yet another Western belief imposed on them?
We also watched a 'Shaka Zulu' episode.

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Friday 8 July -

Today I spent a few hours cleaning the house for our visitors coming this weekend. Labashi's sister's family's is coming for a mini-vacation. We're really looking forward to seeing them and taking the kids fishing and swimming and just hanging out at Pinchot Park.
That evening we watched the first two episodes of a new series for us-- 'Treme'. I think we're hooked already.

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Thursday, 7 July -

This morning I buzzed into town running errands. I had a simple mission-- pick up some breakfast bars from our local Wal-mart. But I ended up having to run to two other Wal-marts. The bars we like have been discontinued and I had to round up what remaining stock I could find to cover us for our next Chambersburg work trip. Well, actually, I guess I didn't HAVE to do that but I do enjoy buzzing around on the motorcycle so any excuse will do.
I also took a walk at Rocky Ridge (1:50 today).
That evening we finished 'Breaking Bad' S3D2.

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Wednesday, 6 July -

Today I researched tsetse flies, malaria, sulfa drugs and paracetamol in prep for the trip and looked into insurance coverage for the immunizations we'll need.
That evening we watched 'Breaking Bad' Season Three episodes (DVD2)

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Tuesday, 5 July -

Today I researched maps for our trip and found there's a set of GPS maps which cover most of the area we'll be visiting. I'll have to check whether they're on our rental GPS.
I had an appointment in Chambersburg today with Maypo. I rode the motorcycle over for the 1300 appointment. Afterwards we installed an air conditioner in the living room window of House 2 and then I rode home.
Late in the day I looked around on Netflix for a motorcycle movie and ran onto an interesting one. I watched 'Cycles South', a 1971 home-made documentary about three guys riding from Denver to the Panama Canal. It was corny yet amazing.

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Monday, 4 July -

I spent much of this morning researching Steri-pens and satellite phones. I think I've come to the conclusion that Steri-pens are cool but can't be trusted as the only water-treatment method for trips into remote areas. Also, Steri-pens are at a disadvantage compared to filters when it comes to debris in the water. I'm thinking high-flow gravity filter and chlorine dioxide tabs at this point.
I also spent quite a bit of time on Iridium satphones. Our rental comes with 20 free minutes but then it's $2.50 a minute after that. I see the latest model Iridium supports texting so that might be an answer on how to keep down on wasting satphone minutes.
Looking at satphones reminded me of using one while I was still working. During the Y2K fiasco we had a rental Iridium satphone to communicate with our headquarters and other field sites. The satphone wouldn't work from inside the building without an external antenna. I happened to know there was a bit of space around the air conditioner in my office so I ran the external cable there and mounted the antenna outside on the air conditioner case. The guys made a lot of jokes about my satphone-equipped air conditioner.
That afternoon I rode the motorcycle up to Mom and Dad's apartment to join Labashi for supper with them. I then came home and mowed the lawn until dark.

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Sunday, 3 July-

This morning we learned that Labashi's dad had taken a fall on Friday. She spent the day over there and I ran some errands on the motorcycle, then took a walk at Rocky Ridge (1:50 today).
That evening we watched 'Cry the Beloved Country' on Netflix Instant.


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Saturday, 2 July -

Today Labashi and I wanted some together-time so we drove down to the REI outfitters shop in Timonium. We only bought a few small items but I did pick up some hard-to-find add-ons for the first-aid kit and Labashi found a travel skirt she likes.
On the way home we drove across York to the Texas Roadhouse restaurant for their excellent baby-back ribs. We then did a bit more shopping, this time at Dick's Sporting Goods, still looking for a few small items for our trip but had no luck at all. We're very limited in what we can bring so we can take on the trip so we're very picky about what we want... at least for now!


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Friday, 1 July-
Today I updated the online blog and then began reading a guidebook for our Africa trip. Finally, we seem to have found an authoritative source for detailed info. This one will certainly be a carry-along book when we go.
That afternoon I walked at Rocky Ridge for 1:43 on my five-mile end-to-end route.
Late in day I made the mistake of doing a search for airline tickets for our trip and found prices have dropped $30 a person since I bought ours. Rats!


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