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First thing after coffee this morning, I whisked Terri the terrier off to get a hair cut. She was more than overdue for a summer trim - I felt really sorry for her having to wear that heavy coat of thick nappy hair in this infernal 100 degree heat. It was clear, however, that she felt like a new woman when I picked her up from the groomer. It must be really nice to be shorn to that degree in hot weather. The few times I've had a great deal of hair trimmed from my head, it's given me a giddy light feeling for the rest of the day so I wonder what it's like to have your entire body trimmed to that extent? Wahoooooo!.
As we pulled into the driveway from our jaunt to Dirty Dog, I stopped to chat with my neighbor Jason about the beautiful Texas Bird of Paradise he had growing near our shared property line.
I never suspected that what I would glean from the conversation would far exceed the reward of a mere botanical discourse. I suggested to Jason that perhaps we should plant a Texas Bird of Paradise in the corner of my yard so there would be two matching bushes on either side of the driveway. I went on and on about how I'd prepare to start to make plans to think about beginning a scheme to determine how to plant the plants, and meanwhile Jason just walked right over, snatched a mature seed pod off his plant, returned to the corner of my yard and crumpled it into the grass. I had to laugh. Me with all my fancy cognitive footwork. I forget how simple life is, trying to plan it out and all. And I haven't a doubt that Jason's methodology will prevail splendidly, producing a willing volunteer. It was a great reminder to resist overengineering. Everything.
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I never suspected that what I would glean from the conversation would far exceed the reward of a mere botanical discourse. I suggested to Jason that perhaps we should plant a Texas Bird of Paradise in the corner of my yard so there would be two matching bushes on either side of the driveway. I went on and on about how I'd prepare to start to make plans to think about beginning a scheme to determine how to plant the plants, and meanwhile Jason just walked right over, snatched a mature seed pod off his plant, returned to the corner of my yard and crumpled it into the grass. I had to laugh. Me with all my fancy cognitive footwork. I forget how simple life is, trying to plan it out and all. And I haven't a doubt that Jason's methodology will prevail splendidly, producing a willing volunteer. It was a great reminder to resist overengineering. Everything.Speaking of which, since I'll be leaving on my road trip shortly, I spent a good bit of my day preparing fuel for the fire/photography project I'll do on the road. I donned Mythbusters style safety gear - goggles, gloves and skepticism - and started mixing things together like a mad scientist in the back yard.
My plan is to take a total of around 20 gallons of fuel with me, already mixed up with the chemicals required to make green, red, yellow-orange and blue flame. I've worked laboriously over the past weeks to find just the perfect containers - ones that fit just so in the rear compartment of my car so that the jugs of fuel aren't able to move around at all and I'm very pleased with the results. Next I'll leave the containers in my hot car for a couple of days to test and see how they hold up to the heat, watching for any signs of problems with pressure build up. Believe me, I'm very safety minded and am taking every precaution. I realize what I'm working with can be dangerous and I feel confident that I've engineered a safe and effective way of carrying it around to minimize the risk. 
Plus, I know to just make sure people stand back at a safe distance when the car starts burning and hope it's at night so I'll be able to see the purty colors. I'm just teasing.
My plan is to take a total of around 20 gallons of fuel with me, already mixed up with the chemicals required to make green, red, yellow-orange and blue flame. I've worked laboriously over the past weeks to find just the perfect containers - ones that fit just so in the rear compartment of my car so that the jugs of fuel aren't able to move around at all and I'm very pleased with the results. Next I'll leave the containers in my hot car for a couple of days to test and see how they hold up to the heat, watching for any signs of problems with pressure build up. Believe me, I'm very safety minded and am taking every precaution. I realize what I'm working with can be dangerous and I feel confident that I've engineered a safe and effective way of carrying it around to minimize the risk. 
Plus, I know to just make sure people stand back at a safe distance when the car starts burning and hope it's at night so I'll be able to see the purty colors. I'm just teasing..
To make sure I had the right amount of lithium chloride in my red fuel, I did a quick fuel test this evening on my driveway. Happily, the lithium levels seemed to be just fine and it had the added benefit of whetting my appetite for all the fun I'll have playing and experimenting with methanol on my trip.
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Stay tuned for more beautiful fire!
Stay tuned for more beautiful fire!
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2 comments:
That's awesome, Shiree. Do you think you should put a Pinto-like warning sticker on the back of your car: Explodes on Impact?
QF
That car looks dangerous!
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