Day 2470

 I woke up  at 7:30 and played games for a while.  Then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After that I went outside and set up for the sewer guy.  Spoiler alert: the asshole never showed up.

I went out to the shed and worked on setting the pinion gear on the Kraton.  I had to take apart a couple of pieces to access the adjustment screws.  Both of the adjustment screws were stripped.  I had to grab on to them with vice grips to remove them.  I finally got them both removed and what I think is a good adjustment of the pinion gear.  Then I buttoned everything back up.

While I was doing that Ellen was finishing painting the mini-b.  She's still working on the B74.

I wen back to the trailer and had leftover pizza for lunch.  There was a message on my phone from a dermatologist.  I'll call them tomorrow.  I also made an appointment with Joe to get the truck filters changed on Friday.

I went back to the shed.  When I was reassembling the Kraton I noticed two of the screw holes on the diff mount were stripped.  I looked up a replacement (metal, not plastic) and ordered it.  Then I measured out the plastic for the chassis protector.  I won't install it until I have the new diff mount.

After that I went back to the trailer and watched videos on the TV waiting for the sewer guy.  Like I said he never showed up.  They say he'll come tomorrow morning.

Ellen fixed chicken tenders and corn for dinner.  Then I continued watching videos.  I found some interesting documentaries.  Ellen actually listened to a couple.

Day 2469

 We got up at 8, did the pet stuff, had breakfast, and left for the laundromat.  Washing the clothes was typically boring.

On the way home Hooch texted to say that they'd be late meeting us at the fair.  Surprise, surprise.  We took the clothes home and left for the fair anyway.

We got into the fair for $5 parking and $1.50 a piece admission.  We were disappointed that a lot of the animals were missing.  There were the big horses, some goats, and a few cows.  That was it.  There were no bunnies or chickens, two of our favorites.

We walked around the outside booths and ended up buying some bamboo pillows.  Then we went inside and looked at exhibits.  Hooch eventually got there and we ended up walking all around until we found them in the photography exhibit.  We voted for Martha's entry.  Then we started walking around.  We eventually ended up at the beer garden drinking and eating lunch.

After that we did a lot more walking around and looking at stuff.  We ended up at the rooftop bar.  It was hot, high 90's, and they weren't open.  We looked at people and talked.  Eventually Martha got hot and cranky.  They went home, and we did shortly after.

We got home about 5:30 after a short stop at Roth's.  I sat down to watch TV and went to sleep.  I woke up later and had leftover pizza for dinner.  After that it was more TV.

Tomorrow we sit around waiting for the sewer guy.

Day 2468

 I got up about 7:30 and played games for quite a while.  Eventually I got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After that I went out to the shed to do RC stuff.

I spent hours moving RC car parts and hardware from the various parts boxes I've been using into the new case I got on Saturday.  I managed to move stuff from three boxes into it.  I now have most of my parts and tools in one case.  I ended up using two of the emptied containers to hold stuff that I'd been putting in a cardboard box.  The final score was one less plastic box and one less cardboard box.

I'd gotten a text from CVS, so we went to Target about 1.  I got the drugs and then we went to the teriyaki place for lunch.  It was very good.  We stopped at the post office on the way home.

It was hot when we got home, but I went back out to the shed anyway.  I replaced the wheel nuts on the two mini-b cars with blue bling nuts.  Then I replaced the connectors on their ESC's and batteries with XT30 connectors.  I also made up a XT30 cable for the battery charger.  Now all of the cars use an XT connector of one size or another.  It was 5:30 by the time I was done.

I went back inside.  I wasn't hungry, so I just watched videos on the TV.  I did fix a sandwich about 7:30.

Day 2467

 We woke up at 7:30, got up, did the pet stuff, had breakfast, and left for TVSC.

The trip up was fast.  We traveled from the Woodburn entrance to parked at TCGC in 18 minutes.  That's amazing.  Of course that meant that we were there half an hour early.  That was plenty of time to unpack everything and get to our station.  We started right on time at 9.

I sucked again today.  At least it wasn't quite as bad as yesterday.  I just couldn't seem to focus in on the targets.  I finally managed to do so on the last 5 stations, but of course that was too late.  A machine went down as we were coming up on our last station. I had to walk all the way from the 100/200 yard range to the clubhouse to get Reggie.  Then he had to wait until Merle came with the parts.  Eventually it got fixed.  We would have been done half an hour earlier if the machine hadn't died.

We ate lunch at the roach coach.  We also stopped at a pet store on the way to John and Patty's.  When we got there there was the usual amount of talking interspersed with a little drinking and napping.

Dinner was Costco chicken.  It was really good.  After dinner was some surfing and more talking.  Alla in all it was a great visit.

We got home at 9:45.  The cats were at the door to great us.  I'm glad tomorrow is an "off" day.

Day 2466

 We got up at 7:45, did the pet stuff, and breakfast, and got ready to go to TCGC.  We spent 20 minutes or so surfing and then left.

We made really good time going up.  When we got there we unpacked, signed up, and waited until we started at 10.  We shot with Jerry and someone we didn't know.

I sucked big time.  I barely beat Ellen.  My eyes were giving me fits.  My left eye kept taking over.  I missed a lot of shots that I should have made with no problem.

We were done a little after 12.  We stopped for lunch at A&W and then went to John and Patty's.  We had a nice afternoon and evening.  I was really tired and napped for a little bit.  John fixed great hamburgers for dinner and we added the corn.

After dinner we watched football and baseball.  We left a little after 8 because we have to shoot at 9 tomorrow.  That means getting up at 7:30 at the latest.

Day 2465

 I woke up about 7:30 and played games for quite a while.  Then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  The morning was cool and cloudy.

After a little surfing we got the stuff together and went shooting.  We both did pretty well.  I hope the same thing happens at the shoot this weekend.  When we were finished we bought ammo and then left for errands. 

The first stop was Bauman's for corn.  John and Patty like it, so we bought them 12 ears.  We also bought a Walla Walla sweet onion and some tomatoes.  When that was done we went to Abby's for pizza for lunch.  We also made a short stop at Safeway for orange juice and potato chips.  The last stop was the post office.

It was getting pretty warm by the time we got back.  We went inside and I surfed.  I wasn't feeling really well.  I think all of the fat in the all meat pizza wasn't doing my gall bladderless system any good.  Eventually I switched from surfing to looking at my phone in the recliner.  I had no interest in dinner.

About 6:45 Best Buy finally emailed that Ellen's new computer was there.  We drove over to pick it up and then drove immediately back.  She started to initialize it while I watched YouTube videos on the TV.

I'm going to bed a little early today because we have to get up and go to TCGC in the morning to shoot.  After that we'll be going to John and Patty's.

Day 2464

 I woke up about 8 and played games for a short while.  Then it was up for breakfast.  Ellen fed the cats.  After that I surfed for a little while waiting for the time to leave for the vet.

We left a little early because Google said 217 was backed up.  We made fantastic time.  I don't thing we went slower than 75 all the way to Tualitin.  The rest of the way was fast also.  217 was not backed up.  We even got a green light at the freeway exit.  Luck continued at the vet.  We were early, but they took us right away.  

When we were done we stopped at Tammie's.  I didn't need anything, but I decided to walk around.  I did buy some generic chassis shield material for the Kraton even though it was much more expensive than the stuff in Salem.

The drive back started off badly.  217 was a parking lot, so we got off at Denney.  Ellen sent me off down a road that was blocked off.  Then I took a wrong turn.  Eventually we made it to the clear part of 217.  The rest of the trip was slow.  We did the speed limit for most of the way because of traffic.

We stopped at Arby's for lunch.  It was quick because it was warm and the cats were in the car.  We opened the sunroof which kept temps down.  We drove to 99 and down to the gas station at the end of town.  We needed fuel, especially because we'll be going to Keizer tomorrow and TCGC both weekend days.  We'll also see John and Patty on Saturday.  That's a lot of driving.

The last stop was the post office.  When we got to the club we bought more ammo.  When we got home I unloaded the car.  By then it was too hot to work in the shed.  I brought some tools to the trailer and tightened the bumper on the TRX-4.  It was really loose.

I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening surfing mixed with TV.  Dinner was the extra Arby's we bought at lunch.

Day 2463

 I woke up about 7:30 and played games for a while.  Then it was pet stuff and breakfast.  We weren't due at Hooch's until after noon, so I went out to the shed.

I spent quite a while making a template for the B74 protector, cutting the protector out, and applying it.  When I finished I realized that I should have just cut out something that was a little oversize and then trimmed the edges with an xacto knife.  I had some time left over, so I put all of the tools away and cleaned up the area.

When that was done we stopped at the club for ammo and then left for Beaverton.  We stopped at Hobbytown so Ellen could get another can of paint.  We also bought another present for Sophia.  Hooch called to say the road to their place was closed and we'd have to take a back way.  Oh well.  We also stopped at the Burgerville on I5 on the way up.

We wanted to stop at the pet store on Cornell.  We got a few cans of sample pet food there.  They had built a Target where the Thriftway was.  We went inside just to see.  It's a brand new, really nice store.  It's laid out as an open space rather than the mazes of the normal stores.

The road to Hooch's was closed, but we didn't have any problem getting there going the back way.

We had a good time at Hooch's.  We gave the kids the gifts.  They liked the jewelry.  We talked outside on the deck for a while and them went inside because it was getting hot.  Later on Hooch grilled burgers and the corn for dinner.

After dinner Hooch and I went down to the foot of the deck to feed the fish and talk.  Ellen stayed inside with everyone else.  Hooch and I walked for hours.  None of it was important, we just made conversation about what had been going on in our lives.

We left about 9.  The drive back was fast.  I like the fact that there doesn't seem to be much speed control anymore.

When we got home we fed a couple of very hungry cats.  After that we surfed wor a while and went to bed.

Day 2462

 I woke up at 7:30 and got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After that it was load up and go to the laundromat.

Washing the clothes was uneventful.  Afterward we stopped at Coastal.  They finally had herbicides.  We almost missed them because they had moved where they were.  I bought what I'll need to use before we leave.

We stopped at Baumann's on the way back and bought some corn.  We also got some caramel corn and donuts for the kids.  We stopped at the post office and asked about someone writing "closed box" on one of our letters.  She said it's common, don't worry about it.

When we got home I got out the stuff to put in the car for tomorrow.  There's kids presents, food, and the TRX-4.  Then I went out to the shed to work on RC cars.  I finished programming the B74.  It's ready to run when the body is finished.  I looked at programming the mini-b roller.  It turns out that the defaults are fine with me.  That means I have two completed cars ready to run once I put the chassis  protectors on.  It was getting hot so I went back inside and ate lunch. 

I texted Hooch about what we should be and when we should be there.  He said we should bring dessert.  We went back over to Roth's for a cherry pie.  They didn't have what we wanted.  We went to the farm store.  They didn't have what we wanted either, so we bought a plain cherry pie.

When we got back I did some surfing.  That got boring, so I got the mini-b and the generic chassis protector out of the shed.  I went back to the trailer and mad a template for the mini-b chassis.  The I used it to cut out a chassis protector.  It turned out really well.  I'll probably do the B74 on Thursday.

Ellen fixed sausage for dinner.  We watched TV for a while and then switched to streaming.  I found out that Hulu has sports.  They were broadcasting a Dodgers game, so we watched that for the rest of the evening.

Day 2461

 I woke up at 7:30 and played games until after 8.  Then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After breakfast I went out to the shed to work on the RC cars.

I finished the work on both cars.  On the B74 I installed the motor and did the basic programming.  I still have to do the advanced programming.  On the mini-b I installed the motor and did the basic programming.  I have to manually program it, so it may be a while before I go through the pain of doing so.

It was lunch time when I finished.  I went back to the trailer and had lunch - leftovers.  I got a text from CVS saying that some drugs were ready.  We got in the car and picked them up.  We stopped at the post office on the way home and picked up the wheels and tires for the B74.

When we got home I installed the tires on the wheels and glued them.  Gluing them is not a fun job.  After that I sat down to watching YouTube on the TV.

Ellen fixed fish, rice pilaf, and corn for dinner.  It was really good.  I continued watch YouTube on the TV for the rest of the evening.

Day 2460

 I woke up about 7:30 and played games for a while.  Then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After that I went out to the shed to work on the B74.

I made up a second wire holder and finished routing the ESC and fan wires.  Then I installed the motor.  That's all I got done before it was time to shoot with Gerry.  I still have to solder the motor leads.  After that it's time to program it.

It was a nice partly cloudy day to shoot.  It was crowded though, the second day of the instructor training.  That meant that we had to skip some of the stations.  It was still fun though.  It was nice not having to pull the cart.

We finished up a little after noon.  We needed groceries, so we left after we put everything away.  We stopped at the club and bought ammo and targets.  We stopped at Jones Farm first.  We got peaches and ice cream.  Then we went to Fireman's for dinner.  We bought large sandwiches so that we'd have something for dinner.  Eventually we stopped at Roth's for a couple of items.  We were mainly there for milk.  We stopped at the post office on the way home to pick up the new nut chopper.

It was in the high 80's when we got home.  I sat down in the recliner and started watching a documentary on streaming TV.  I fell asleep almost immediately and slept for almost 3 hours.  When I woke up it was dinner time.  I didn't feel like eating immediately, so I surfed for a while before having the sandwich.

After dinner was surfing.  The new chopper works pretty good.

Day 2459

 I woke up about 7:30 and played games until 8.  Then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After breakfast I got out the stuff and we went shooting.

Some of the stations have been changed.  The new ones have some good targets.  We skipped the ones that hadn't been changed.  The weather was cool and cloudy.  We had a good time.  Both of us shot pretty well.

It was lucky that we started early.  The club had an instructor's class today.  There were a lot of people shooting.  We finished just as things were starting to get crowded.  We stopped on the way back and bought a case of ammo.  It was good that we did.  Gerry wants to shoot with us tomorrow.  We also need a couple of cases for the two day shoot at Tri-County next weekend.

On the way back one of the cart's tires came off it's wheel.  I put away the stuff and went out to fix it.  It seems to have just slipped off.  If it does it again I'll have to glue it on.  I also fixed the sewer wand.

I went back inside and surfed for a while.  I had leftovers for lunch.  Then I went to the shed to work on RC stuff.  I put new connectors on the mini-b battery and ESC.  I also put battery connectors on the B74 ESC.  I installed the ESC and receiver in the B74. I spent quite a bit of effort making the wiring neat.

I'm not finished with the wiring and still have to install the motor.  It was almost 6 though and I was tired of working on it.  I went back to the trailer for dinner.  Ellen fixed stir fry and corn on the cob.  After dinner I watched streaming movies.  I watched 2.5 of them.  I'm really getting into the movies I find.  Some are old and some are just ones that were probably never released.

Day 2458

 I woke up about 8:15.  I didn't get to sleep until about 2 last night.  I was playing games.  After pet stuff and breakfast I called the trailer place.

The news isn't good.  The axles haven't shown up and the guy doesn't have any hope that they will come in soon.  We may be leaving the trailer here this winter.

After that I went back out to the shed to finish up the B74.  The assembly is all done.  I didn't install the electronics for two reasons.  First I needed a pinion gear.  I'd forgotten to order one.  The second was I need to solder the battery and motor leads.  I didn't feel like doing that.

I went back to the trailer and surfed for awhile, followed by lunch.  I also texted Hooch.  We're going to see them on Wednesday.

I decided to go to the RC store to get the pinion gear.  I felt stupid because we were there yesterday.  On the way back we stopped at the Salem farm store and the post office.

When we got home I brought all of the RC paints, the B74 body, and the mini-b body to the trailer.  I washed the plastic pieces.  Then I got Ellen started on figuring out how to paint the bodies.  I worked on taping up designs on the wings.  We listened to Kurosawa movies while we worked.

Dinner was a frozen dinner.  After that we worked for a little while more and then sat down to watch Seven Samurai.  It's a long movie.  After that it was time for bed.

Day 2457

 I woke up at 7:45 and played games until about 8:15.  Then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After breakfast we drove over to the urgent care place.

I spent more time there filling out paper work than I did getting seen by the nurse.  She gave me a prescription for some cream and said she'd get me a referral to a dermatologist.  Then we went to CVC to pick up the prescription.

Ellen wanted to go to Best Buy to look at a computer.  I said we out to get another spiffy hair dryer for the house.  We got both.  It was $200 for the Dyson knockoff.  It was $1,400 for the computer.  She won't get it until next week.  She also bought a TB external SSD to back up the computer and her phone.

After that we went to the pet store for more cat food.  The final stop was the RC place so I could get a chassis protector for the mini-b.  We stopped at Mickey D's for lunch and Roth's for a couple of items.  Then we went home.

I surfed for a little while and tried to call the trailer axle place.  The first time they didn't answer.  The second time they said my contact wasn't there today.  I'll try again tomorrow.

I went out to the shed to work on the B74.  I installed the sway bars and the shocks.  The sway bars were a lot of finicky parts that took a while to assemble.  After that it was hot and humid so I quit.  It actually rained a little.

Ellen fixed sloppy Joe's for dinner.  After dinner I watched streaming movies.  i finished one, watched all of another, and started a third.  It's much better than DirecTV.  It also made up for Ellen's all day chick flick marathon.

Day 2456

 I woke up at 7:45 and played games for about half an hour.  then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After that it was out to the shed to work on the B72 and wait for the sewer guy.

I started by assembling a couple of parts bags on the B72.  It all went well except for one small spacer that decided to leave the bench and jump into the garbage can.  I had to almost empty the can by hand to find it.  Eventually I ran out of things I could do until I got the new bearings.

I switched to the mini-b.  I installed the servo using the parts in the kit.  I didn't have to reposition the servo.  There was plenty of room for the electronics front to back.  The limitation was side to side.  I ended up using the Dremel to remove some material from both the battery mounts and also from the side rails.  I stopped when I had all of the electronics mounted.  I still have to install the motor and program it.  I can't do that until I get a battery.  It might be here tomorrow.

I went back inside a little after 1.  It was getting hot (eventually 97).  I at a sandwich for lunch and then surfed.  We didn't here the sewer guy drive up.  By the time I got out there he had opened the door and was trying to drain everything.  Of course he spilled more shit.  He also started messing with the other valves while I was turning on Ellen's water.

Ellen's hose loosened while she was using this.  It sprayed water all over the bathroom and pissed her off.  I couldn't deal with it, I had to control the sewer guy.  Eventually the tank got drained.  I hope it was all cleaned out.

While I was working on cleanup Ellen threw the hose out the door.  That broke the water meter.  I was pissed.  When everything was cleaned up we left for drugs, groceries, a water meter, and the post office.  The bearings I needed were at the post office.

When we got home I surfed.  It was REALLY hot.  I looked for a place where I could get my face looked at.  The largest patch is getting really close to my eye.  I looked at the Salem medical place in Woodburn.  I can get an appointment with a NP in a month.  I found an urgent care place that I think I can see someone at tomorrow.  They are walkup only.

Ellen fixed pork chops for dinner.  About 7 I went out and got a selection of B72 parts and tools.  I worked for about two hours and finished three bags of steps.  I'm now up to bag 12, out of 13.  I'm going to have to get Ellen to painting.

After that I surfed until dinner time.

Day 2455

 I woke up at 7:30 and played games for an hour.  Then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After that we loaded up the car and went to the laundromat.

Washing the clothes was as boring as usual.  Afterwards we sopped at the post office and went home.

We put everything away and then went out shooting.  It was a little warm, 80's.  We walked around the course.  It was pretty boring.  There were no new targets and some of the machines had been moved to the FITASC course.  We shot some from outside the stand.  We only shot 175 targets between us.

By then it was getting pretty warm, eventually 94.  We went back to the trailer and had lunch.  Then I got some parts and tools out of the shed and worked on the B72 in the trailer.  I've got other steps that I'll probably do tomorrow.  Hopefully the bearings will come in soon.

When I was done building I spent a little time surfing.  Then it was TV and a nap.

Ellen fixed sausage and corn on the cob for dinner.  The corn was from Baumann's and great.

After dinner was TV.

Day 2454

 I woke up at 7:30 and played games until 8.  Then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  I only used the CPAP for a couple of hours last night.  For some reason it wasn't allowing me to breath normally.

After breakfast we went to US Bank.  We needed to sort out the business with their bank cards.  We got tht pin changed and I got a card with my name on it ordered.  Then we went to Wells Cargo so Ellen could get them to send her a card (I already received mine).

We stopped at the post office on the way home.  The parts to finish my Mini-b roller were there.  The B72 bearings aren't due for a couple of days.

When we got home I went out to the shed and got the tools and parts to build the B72 shocks.  I can't continue with the whole build until I get a replacement for the bearing I lost.  I worked in the trailer because it was way too hot to work in the shed.

I spent until about 4 working on the shocks.  Each of the 4 shocks has 18 parts.  It's a messy business involving grease and oil.  It didn't help that the instructions for the first step had an error in them.  It took me a while to work out which parts were actually needed.

The front shocks worked well when I completed them.  The rear ones didn't.  I spent a lot of time trying to get them to work.  I finally gave up and declared the good enough.

Ellen fixed frozen fish and french frys for dinner.  After dinner I watched documentaries on streaming TV.  There is absolutely no reason to have DirecTV any more.

Day 2453

 I woke up about 8 and played games for an hour.  Then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After breakfast I went out to the shed to work on the B72.

I completed a "bag and a half" of work before I screwed up.  I dropped a small bearing.  I spent about an hour on the floor of the shed looking for it, but didn't find it.  I gave up in disgust and went back to the trailer to order replacements.  They won't be here until next week.

Ellen went shooting FITASC while I was working.  She did well again, winning her class.  She's now obsessing about getting better.

I spent a lot of the remaining day surfing.  I got an email from the dog breeder in Burns.  He has three females available.  Two of them look good.  My problem is I'm not sure I want to get tied down by another dog.  Also I'll be in my mid 80's when it dies.  I''m not even sure I can take care of it that long.  It's a hard decision.  I'm going to sleep on it.

Dinner was leftovers.  After dinner I watched some interesting shows on the TV connected to the internet.  DirecTV had nothing worth watching.

Day 2452

 I woke up at 7:30 and played games for over an hour.  Then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After breakfast I went out to the shed to work on the B72.  Ellen surfed for a while and then went to shoot FITASC.

I started with the steps of bag 1 and worked through the first couple of steps of bag 5.  I stopped there because i had to seal the carbon fiber parts with lue.  Also, it was beginning to get pretty warm in the shed.  I really enjoyed working on the kit.

By then Ellen had finished shooting.  She did pretty well - won her class.  We surfed for a while and then had lunch.  After a little more surfing we went to the grocery store.

We stopped at the post office.  There were some replacement cards there.  When Ellen called to activate them she couldn't because they claimed the PIN was invalid.  We parked at Safeway and she spent quite a while talking to customer service.  The upshot is we have to go to the bank on Monday.

After Safeway we went home.  We were going to get sandwiches at Dominos, but there was a 35 minute wait.  Instead Ellen fixed sausage and hash browns at home.

I surfed for a while after dinner.  Then I moved to the recliner and watched TV with Ellen.

Day 2451

 I woke up at 7:30 and payed games for over an hour.  Then it was pet stuff and breakfast.  After breakfast I went out to the shed.

I had three RC goals today.  One was to reset the Kraton gear mesh.  It was too tight.  I did that, but the adjustment screws are almost stripped out.  The second goal was to do the three B74 differentials.  I did that.  I'm glad that I had John's scale.  It would have been almost impossible to do it by eye.  The 200K oil was almost putty.  The third goal was to get the stuff ordered for the mini-b roller.

I took the mini-b inside and commenced a session of measurements and looking at specs.  I made sure that the ESC I want to buy would work.  I also checked the motor specs.  It was good that I did.  Losi uses a weird gear pitch (0.5 Mod).  Pinions of that pitch aren't available.  To make it worse, Losi's pinion uses an old standard 2mm motor shaft.  I could only find one suitable motor, and it took a long time to find it.

It was after dinner before I had the order set up.  Most of it comes from AMain, but some comes from Amazon.

Dinner was frozen pizza.  After dinner I went back out to the shed.  I cut out the B74s body and wing.  I kept some waste pieces for Ellen to experiment paint on.  I also drained the tanks.

It was 9 before I got done.  The rest of the evening was TV.

Day 2450

 I woke up about 6:30 and played games for hours.  Then I got up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After that I went out to the garage to prepare for going to the track.

I charged up the batteries for both cars.  While that was going on I got out all of the miscellaneous screws that have been left over from the builds and parts that I've purchased.  There were a lot of them.  I put them all in one of the new parts boxes I bought.  I also installed a couple of last minute upgrade parts on the B6.4.

We left for the track about 11:30.  We stopped at the post office first where I picked up the B72.  After that it was off to the track.

There's no cost to use the track.  I started with Ellen driving.  She wasn't very good.  The car is twitchy and she just kept both over steering and using too much throttle.  I made her go reset her car whenever she crashed.  She was actually beginning to improve when the battery died.

I got out my car.  It wouldn't work.  The slipper clutch was way too loose.  The guy at the store showed me how to fix it.  I went out to drive.  The car ran great.  The guy at the desk said the gear mesh was too tight.  He adjusted it for me.  After that the car ran even better.  I sucked as a driver.  I must have spent between half a hour and a hour.  I gave up before the battery did.  

We packed up and bought some paint.  Then we went to Nancy Jo's for lunch.  Then it was the pet store next door for cat food.

It was 85 when we got home.  I took everything out to the shed.  Then I started working.  I finished sorting the hardware.  Then I resoldered the battery leads on the B6.4.  They were vertical which kept the body from fitting.  I soldered them at a 90 degree angle.  I also straightened up the wiring.  I hadn't done that before because I didn't know if I would have to fix something.  One of the guys at the was appalled when he saw it.

It was very how hot in the shed.  I was glad to be finished.  I went back to the trailer and worked out whether or not the electronics I want to buy will fit in the mini-b roller.  I think they will.  Then I sat down and watched TV.  

We ate snacks, but no real dinner.  We did watch quite a few rc body painting and mini-b videos on the TV.

Day 2449

 I got up at 8, played games for an hour, and then got up for breakfast.  After breakfast we left to go to Beaverton.

We stopped at Baumann's on the way up to get corn.  Then we stopped at Costco for water.  Finally we stopped at Freddies for chips and salsa.  We still got to the dentist 20 minutes early.

I dropped Ellen off and then went over to Tammies.  I bought a mini-b roller kit and a can of paint.  Then it went to the french bakery to wait for Ellen to be done.  I picked her up when she was done.  We stopped at Mickey D's for lunch and then went to John and Patty's.

We talked for hours.  I showed John Ellen's mini-b and my B6.4.  He was suitable impressed.  I even got Ellen to drive it a while.  I drove it more, chasing the cat and the dogs.  It's a fun buggy.

We left at 8:30 because we didn't want to keep them up.  The drive home was fast - little traffic.  We averaged 37 mpg from John's place to the trailer.  That's amazing.

We stopped at the post office.  There was a whole bunch of packages.  I got parts for both the mini-b and the B6.4.  I also got the motor/esc for the B72.

I spent the rest of the short evening looking for parts for the mini-b roller.

Day 2448

 I woke up at 7:30 and played games until 8.  Then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After that it was pack up the stuff and go to the laundromat.

The laundromat was typically uneventful.  Afterwards we went to Walgreens so Ellen could get some underwear.  Then it was over to Wally World for some groceries.  Then last stop was the post office.  There were three packages and half a dozen letters.

When we got back some of the letters were replacement cards.  I replaced the ones I had and put the old ones in under the bed.  The only package for me was the fan for the B6.4.  I took it outside and installed it.  Then I programmed the receiver and ESC.  That went OK.  The problem was the servo horn was interfering with the steering arms.  I ended up spending a lot of time modifying the servo's mount to give more clearance.

The modification helped, but there was still interference.  I finally figured out that unlike all of the other cars I have the steering movement is controlled by the end point adjustment on the transmitter.  I used a piece of paper to set the end points as far as possible without hitting the arms.  We'll have to see how that works.

I finished the work on the buggy by attaching the body with velcro.  That officially finishes the build.  Then I put all of the tools away and went back to the trailer because it was getting pretty hot in the shed.

I had lunch and surfed for a while.  That got old and I started watching TV with Ellen.  I had a little nap before dinner.  Ellen fixed stir fry.  After dinner we watched more TV.

I cleaned off the Star Link antenna also.  It seems to make the connection in the evening much better.

About 9:30 we actually had a thunder storm.  It was a mild Oregon one with a little wind and rain as well as some thunder and lightning.  It's funny.  I used to think that was a real thunder storm.

Day 2447

 I woke up at 7:30 and played games until 9.  Then it was up for breakfast, Ellen fed the cats.  It was cooler today, so after breakfast we got out the shooting stuff and went to the course.

We walked around the course.  We were the only ones on the course, so we shot from outside the stations.  The targets haven't been changed in weeks, so they are boring.  Shooting from different positions made them interesting again.  We both shot pretty well.

We got done a little after noon.  We did a little surfing and then had lunch.  Ellen reprogrammed the Garmin (they were going to delete us for non use).  She also called US Bank because we hadn't gotten our new cards yet.

I watched several videos.  Then I had so much fun looking for B72 parts yesterday I started looking for parts for Ellen's mini-B.  I could hop it up for under $100.  I just have to convince her.

Ellen fixed frozen fish for dinner.  After dinner we watched a movie on streaming TV.

Day 2446

 I woke up at 7:30 and played games until 9.  Then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After breakfast I went out to the shed.

I cut the back of the B6.4 body to fit the "with fan" configuration.  Then I removed the stickers from one of the hardware boxes I bought yesterday.  That took quite a lot of work.  There were two large stickers one on each side of the lid.  I felt kind of stupid what I was finished.  The box is too big to fit where I want to put it.  By then it was getting hot, so I bagged.

It got really hot today.  It was 90 by 1:30.  That meant hiding out in the trailer.   I spent the rest of the morning and most of the afternoon researching stuff for the new buggy I bought (B72.1).  I looked at videos, websites, and lots of product descriptions.  I finally settled on all of the things that I need.  I really enjoyed doing all of the research.  I think I like that at least as much as driving the cars.

I ordered the servo and receiver from Amazon.  Amain doesn't carry them.  Then I ordered the motor/esc combination from Amain.  I got 10% off with a coupon  The last things I need to order are the tires, wheels, and fan.  I'm still researching the tires.  There's several good candidates.

I switched to watching TV.  Ellen fixed BLT's for dinner.  After dinner we watched TV. 

Day 2445

 I woke up at 7:30 and played games until 8.  Then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  After breakfast I went to the shed to organize the RC stuff.

I've amassed quite a collection of stuff.  The first job was to collect all of the stuff left over from the B6.4 build.  The kit had 10 bags, and there were parts left over in every bag.  I put them it 10 marked bag and then put the bags in a larger bag.  That bag went into a plastic box.

After that I went through all of my other parts boxes and collected all of the parts left over from other builds.  I bagged, labelled, and put them in the box.  I also put all of the wire and potions I've purchased in a box of their own.

Finally I took all of the leftover screws and put them in my existing hardware boxes.  

It took until after 1 to do all of this.  I went to the trailer and had lunch followed by some surfing.  Then I decided to go on a drive. 

We went to Jones Farm, but didn't buy anything.  Then we went to Harbor Freight to get more parts boxes.  It turned out that the empty boxes cost the same as the boxes holding small hardware boxes.  I bought two boxes of parts.  I'll empty them into my existing parts bins and use the emptied boxes to hold RC parts.

When we got home it was 92.  That's too hot to work in the shed.  I started watching build videos for the new kit I bought.  After a while I got bored and started watching TV.

Dinner was frozen enchiladas.  After dinner was more TV.

Day 2444

 I woke up at 8 and played games until 10.  Then it was up for breakfast (Ellen fed the cats).  Then I went out to the shed to work on the B6.4.

I re-positioned the ESC and receiver.  That allowed me to route the sensor wires under the battery with no interference.  It took some trial and error to get it all worked out.  Then I connected up the servo and ESC to the receiver.  It's ready to test out after I solder the motor leads.

When I was finished with that I loaded the garbage into the truck and went to the club to dump it.  We also stopped in and bought another case of ammo.  After a stop at the post office we went down to the RC store.  Ellen needed another can of paint.  We saw this cute 1/16 scale buggy and bought it, too.  It was only $160 and was completely RTR.  I really bought it because the store looks like it could use some business.

We stopped at the teriyaki place in Keizer on the way back.   I think it will become our favorite place in Keizer.  Afterwards we walked over for frozen yogurt.

Two cards came in the mail today.  Both of us had to work to get them activated.  One would only let Ellen do it.  I unboxed the buggy and put it on charge.  It took a long time to charge.  I surfed while I waited and later had leftovers for dinner.

After dinner I fired up the buggy.  I could only drive it inside.  It works great.  I think Ellen will like driving it.  I'm planning on both of us practicing on the track at the same time.

After playing with the buggy I sat down and started watching videos for the new buggy on the TV.  Ellen watched, too.  After a while I switched to pricing out hop ups for the new buggy.

Day 2443

 I woke up about 8 and played games for about an hour.  Then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  Hooch texted me.  He wanted to shoot with us.  There was stuff going on at Tri-County, so he planned on coming down here about 1.

After breakfast I went out to the shed to work on the B6.4.  There wasn't much left to do, but the process was a fight.  Some parts weren't in the bag and I had to search other bags for it.  One part needed significant Dremel work to fit.  The wing mount holes were in the wrong place.  Worse yet, the fan I had was too big.  I worked until Hooch got here about 1, but I still had a little left to do.

We had a great time shooting.  The weather was partly cloudy, warm, and a little windy.  We took Gerry's cart, so no one got overly tired.  Ellen and I shot up a case and a half of ammo.

We got done after 4.  We said goodbye to Hooch and put everything away.  Then we went to the post office.  I was disappointed that none of the new cards had come.  Then we went to Abby's for dinner.  This time we had pizza so we would have some to eat tomorrow.

When we got home I went online shopping for the fan.  I also bought some thumb screws because the kit only supplied plain screws.  I was watching TV at the same time.

About 9 I went back out to the shed and finished up some of the stuff I didn't get done earlier.  The only thing left it the wiring, put on the wheels, and programming.

Day 2442

 I woke up about 8 and played game until 9.  Ellen fed the cats, I just had breakfast.  After breakfast I went outside to get ready for the sewer guy.

When I was setting up the toilet sprayer I noticed that it's spray pattern was bad.  I took the nozzle apart and found two small pieces of plant material and an earwig blocking parts of it.  In the process of cleaning it I also discovered how to set it for more flow.

I also improved the flow to the tank sprayer by shortening the hose I bought last week and installing it.  Not only is it 5/8 instead of 1/2, it doesn't kink either.

When that was done I went back inside and killed time surfing.  I'm thinking about buying a 4wd buggy.  Team Associated has one for $100 off.

I had lunch and was getting bored.  I was just about ready to go get the B6.4 when the sewer guy showed up.  I went outside and got the tank dumped.  I told the guy not to block off the tube, but he still did.  That spilled more shit that I had to clean up after he left.  The new sprayer flows great.  It really speeds up the process.

After he left I got out the B6.4.  The next step was building the shocks.  It was a lot of small parts combined with grease and oil.  There were the usual couple of difficult assembly steps.  Ellen separated the process with dinner.  It was pork chops and mashed potatoes.  It was good.

Between dinner and some surfing it was about 8 when I finished the shocks and installed them on the chassis.  There's only one bag of parts and a few steps left.

The rest of the evening was surfing.

Day 2441

 I woke up at 7:30, got up and did the pet stuff and hand breakfast.  After that we loaded up the car and went to the laundromat.  Washing the clothes was as boring as usual.  Thankfully there was no lost wallet drama.

We went to Safeway when we were finished.  Prices are getting ridiculous.  I don't think there was any meat for less than $10 a pound.  Cold cuts have doubled in price.  I left pissed.  

We stopped at the post office on the way home.  The first of the new cards came in.

After unloading the car we decided to go get more cat food.  I also wanted to get some shock grease for the B6.4.  On the way back we stopped at the Chinese place in Salem for lunch.  It was great.  I miss good Chinese food.

It was getting pretty hot by the time we got back.  Eventually it was 94.  I spent the rest of the day and most of the evening watching movies on the TV.  They were all online movies.  We don't need DirecTV anymore.

I'm really looking forward to waiting all day for the sewer guy not to show up tomorrow.  NOT.

Day 2440

 I woke up about 8 and played games until 9.  Then it was up for pet stuff and breakfast.  It was cooler today although still in the 80's.

After breakfast I drained the tanks and when to the shed to work on the Kraton.  I determined that the servo saver was tight enough.  Then I set up the transmitter and used the blutooth programmer to set the ESC.  I may do some fine tuning of it.  Other than that the Kraton is finished and ready to run.

I gave into my weakness.  Instead of charging a battery and running the Kraton I got out the B6.4.  I did 6 steps.  They were conceptually easy, but I found a way to make some of them harder than they needed to be.  It was just inexperience.  I did fine on the things I'd done before, and really slow on the ones I hadn't.  With those steps complete, the next thing to do is the shocks.  The instructions call for a majic potion I don't have.  I have to decide if I'll get some.

By then it was 2.  I was hungry and the shed was getting hot.  I went inside for lunch.  Then I surfed for a little while.

Surfing didn't last long.  I sat down in the recliner and started watching the internet.  I couldn't find a movie I liked, so I watched YouTube.  I found a lot of interesting videos.

Ellen fixed a bagged shrimp and noodle thing for dinner.  I added cornbread to it.

After dinner it was more YouTube until I got bored.  Then we both watched some recorded animated shows by the guy who did Samari Jack.