gtblum

I agree with everything Jim said, except for the comment about the mantles. They fit perfectly with the rest of that slam together, wanna be, finish work. You might want to consider hiring someone with a bit of talent to start over, or maybe just decorate it to where it distracts from the obvious. Click to Enlarge 47.52 KB

Candy, doughnuts, pizza, pens, key chains, and other, are worn out, and old school. They've seen it all. If you want to make a lasting impression that will get them talking about you, just pass out envelopes of ca$h. Everybody likes cash and it won't screw up anyone's diet plan.

Did you write it up? If so, was it a narrative or a checklist item?

I wasn't going to mention this. I'm not a fan of people sharing their personal, family business on the internet, but I think it's best to share this picture of my cat's substance abuse problem. If I can save one cat by raising awareness of this very real and often ignored problem with other upper branch cat owners, it's worth the little bit of embarrassment to Punkinhead. Click to Enlarge 54.2 KB

For the record, I'm a dog guy who's down to only having a cat these days, that acts more like a dog than a cat. He won't shit in the box no matter how nasty it is outside. He's going out. He'll fight anything and everything from the pitbull he ran out of here twice, to the god damn fox that wakes me up a 3:30 in the morning with its distress barking when they're about to go. He rolls around on the ground with his buddy the beagle from up the road. The neighbors all know him and treat him like the neighborhood dog. The son of a bitch will kill mice, moles, and chipmunks, outside of the house, but he won't touch the mice in the house. If anything puts me on the branch above, it's not taking on the extra responsibility of having another dog. Cats are low maintenance.

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I used to use the "water popping" technique (though I never heard that term applied to it) when finishing pieces of furniture, though not to prep for stain. I'd do it to achieve a flawlessly smooth surface. I'd repeatedly raise the "fur" and sand it down again with fresh sharp sandpaper until no more fur would come up. It made for an impeccably smooth surface. With stain, I'd be concerned that even a light buffing with steel wool or scotch brite would remove some of the stain, leaving light spots. Let us know how it works out. Never heard the term water popping, but raising the grain or nap is a common step in creating a glass smooth finish with cabinets or furniture. I use sanding sealer to raise the grain and a 320 grit for the final sanding.

According to the OSHA 10 training manual, a dust mask won't stop the particulates that cause health problems. You might better wear a respirator with the proper filter for what you're hoping to stop, and maybe use a spray bottle of water to keep everything wet enough to reduce the amount of airborne.

Funny. Around here, they're called potato bugs.

Wood mizer has been around since 82. Pretty much the same machine. There's been a dealer in the neighborhood since around 1990.

Pointing fingers and blaming others is a lot easier for those who possess the negotiating skills of a four year old in a shopping cart, than overcoming objections and working a deal until it's dead.

Sure. Now he brings in the good snacks. Some advice for the students. If you have lunch at the Village House Restaurant, stay away from the bacon cheeseburger deluxe. You'll keep eating until you finish it. If you do, you'll be junk for the rest of the day.

When you get done playing with that toy, make one of these. [utube] " type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="344">

Dio horns! There's one I never expected to read here! Didn't know we had headbangers in the group. He was from Binghamton. Never met him. Have friends who knew him. I did on many occasions, shoot hockey pucks at Joey Belladonna, (Bellardini to us) (Anthrax) when we were kids. He grew up in the neighborhood, and was a very good goalie. Dio horns. Ha!

It would be politically incorrect to use that word for anyone other than agents, so...beware. Marc Is that right? Apology accepted.