Occasional thoughts and deeds of an Engineer
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  • Sun & Warmer

    Posted on April 29th, 2010 cwmoore No comments

    [singlepic id=147 w=320 h=240 float=right]Today has been a mixed bag on the boat.  First it was overcast and clam and then a rapidly falling barometer yielded clearing skies and a strong SE wind with warming temperatures.  We will welcome the ability to wear shorts tomorrow as the temperature approaches 80°.

    We had lunch and used the Internet at The Annex this morning.  Just as we left it started raining and the wind really came up with whitecaps on Kalamazoo Lake.  We went back to the boat for a rest and then I re-re-built the hot water faucet in the head.  Then it was on to the library to use the Internet and to make some commentaries on the Holland Sentinel website.

    Last night we went to a “Revelation Art Story” at the library.  It turned out to be excellent and we were blown away with the quality of the presentation.  We ended up buying a DVD for $10 that depicts, in art, the Bible’s Revelation.  The surprising thing is that it is not copyrighted and we were invited to copy it and show at our church.

  • On the boat

    Posted on April 25th, 2010 cwmoore No comments

    I moved on the boat last Wednesday and have been on Inspiration all weekend in the rain.  The barometer keeps falling and the winds keep rising.  Barometric pressure is 29.22 inches and falling.

    The marina internet is off so I went to the library and could not connect, next stop was Saugatuck Brewing Company.  I sat in the parking lot and downloaded three days of email.  From there I went to Uncommon Grounds coffee shop and am doing the blog from here as it is a wireless N connection an is real fast.  I’ll go back to the library to figure out why their net is not functioning.  I am using a new Belkin wireless N and am not sure how the software drivers work.  OK, time to go to the Library for the next chapter.  BFN

  • Pigeon Lake & River

    Posted on April 18th, 2010 cwmoore No comments

    [singlepic id=165 w=320 h=191 float=left]Saturday Fred and I went kayaking.  We put in at Pigeon Lake boat ramp and paddled to the opposite end of the lake.  The wind was up and the second basin had a lot more wave action as the wind was from the WNW.  We took the Pigeon River outlet and traveled to the pond, looked around for a bit and then proceeded down the river for a mile or so.  We stopped for a short break at a little bar where the water was about a foot deep.

    The way back was up stream and we had to paddle a little more.  We stopped in the pond to take some pictures.  On the river going from the pond to Pigeon Lake we startled a Blue Heron and a mated pair of  Geese.  Out on the lake we paddled back into a stiff breeze of about 15kt.  I took the direct route as I had my skirt on and Fred took the shore line because he did not have a skirt.  We both made it in approximately the same time and I am sure I[singlepic id=166 w=246 h=184 float=right] had to work much harder than he did.  A few of the waves broke over the bow and slapped my face

    The whole trip took about 2 hours from boat unloading to boat loading.  We are planning a further trip after a big rain down to Hanselman Road.  This should be some fun.  If we can cover enough ground perhaps we can go further if the water depths permit.  I do know one stretch is quite shallow and SAM & I had to get out of the boats many, many times going from 400N down to Pleasant Lake – it was no fun.

  • Hulu is fine

    Posted on April 15th, 2010 cwmoore No comments

    We are close to shutting down the cable TV feed.  We use Hulu now most of the time and get our news off the Internet.  It is rare that we watch TV anymore and have not watched over-the-air TV for 20 years.  However, over-the-air status may change soon as the new digital TV is pretty good around here so why pay for cable?

  • More Work

    Posted on April 13th, 2010 cwmoore No comments

    My workload at Moore Wireless is picking up a bit.  Not like the good old days of  pre-2008 but it is keeping my mind occupied and a little cash coming in. 

    I re-vamped the old Moore wireless site and gave it a newer look so I could add it to my growing portfolio of websites I have worked on and improved.  To this site I added a News / Events page that is blog like and I can live with it.  If I get time I need to completely redo the www.charleswmoore.org site but I think it will be next winter before that happens.

    I ordered a new 70 ppd dehumidifier so this summer my office area will be a nice and low humidity environment.  The three year young unit I had down here just died last summer and since we were cruising Lake Michigan I did not replace it right away.  I’ll see how it works out but I might add a effluent pressure system so I can pump the water up to the downstairs sink instead of going clear to the floor drain.  Seventy pints per day is a lot of water to be going into the perimeterdrain.  That way the fail-safe would be the drain if the pump quit working.

  • The water is wide

    Posted on April 11th, 2010 cwmoore No comments

    httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EfHZtCKJGY

    The Lyrics

    The water is wide
    I can’t cross over
    And neither have
    I wings to fly
    Build me a boat
    That can carry two
    And both shall row
    My love and i

    There is a ship
    And she sails the sea
    She’s loaded deep
    As deep can be
    But not so deep
    As the love I’m in
    I know not how
    I sink or swim

    Oh love is handsome
    And love is fine
    The sweetest flower
    When first it’s new
    But love grows old
    And waxes cold
    And fades away
    Like summer dew

    Build me a boat
    That can carry two
    And both shall row
    My love and i
    And both shall row
    My love and i

  • Boat Work – Spring 2010

    Posted on April 10th, 2010 cwmoore No comments

    We went to visit Inspiration in her heated storage Thursday. Upon arrival we found the house batteries flat dead.  I mean like zip voltage, not sufficient to even make the DC lights glow a little.  Of course, that means a whole new battery bank will need to be installed – think $600 for 4 batteries.  I charged the batteries for an hour and then put it back on house batteries and it only took about 15 minutes for it to discharge to less than 10 VDC.  Kaput.

    Friday morning we started the VC17M bottom coat and finished around 1700 hrs.  This was a 2 quart year – yea.  This year we tried foam rollers instead of the 1/4″ Knapp rollers.  The foam rollers work much better and do not shed little droplets of the copper all over your glasses and shoes.  The bottom looks very, very good.

    Saturday, today, we applied the green waterline stripe with a re-coat of the one part epoxy copper ablative paint.  It too looked good when we were finished.  We are well satisfied with our little three day mini working vacation that sported plenty of sunshine and today’s warm temperatures.  We were both tired on the trip back home.

    We are now ready for our May 1st launch.

  • Transmutation of Elements

    Posted on April 2nd, 2010 cwmoore No comments

    While I was in High School I did a science project on The Transmutation of Elements.  For that effort I won the Navy’s Science Cruise award.  Working out there would have been great had I chosen Nuclear instead of Electronic Engineering.  Below is a little bit about INL.