Glenn's Underground Cabin Update

rick91351 · October 03, 2013, 11:00:36 AM

All kidding aside nothing beats a nice warm meal when you are working out in the cold weather and are damp and chilled - that baloney sandwich that tasted okay last summer now is about two degrees colder than your legs and hands. Your coffee cup is like an ice cube and you are trying to figure out which is colder toes or coffee cup as you spill the hot coffee on your hands and drop the cup. You are trying to get out of the wind behind a blue tarp and a 20 mph north wind just don't cut.... Your a lot safer if you can get warmed back up and have time to rest your body and your mind before 'hitting it again'.

glenn kangiser · October 03, 2013, 11:33:30 AM

Yup... I've been thinking about that wind, Rick. Tehachapi is in the middle of the wind generators between the Mojave Desert and the San Joaquin Valley. I am liable to encounter a few breezes though the job is tucked up along one of the mountains on the North of the town.

Still putting stuff away and deciding what I want to take... the center area will be open for my Motorcycle... I already mounted a stand in there for it. I will use a nylon strap and lift it in with the crane.

The tool box worked out well as it raised the diesel welder above the other one for even better cooling. Top of the exhaust on the diesel is at about 7'6"

Microwave is in the tool box at the rear of the truck for easy access - both welders have power on them. I am still considering installing an inverter for battery charging of my Makita tools and silence during break times...courtesy to the Union dudes....

October 03, 2013, 12:12:13 PM

Quote from: Windpower on October 03, 2013, 03:44:37 AM
get a gas grill and set up a mini kitchen

you might even sell some lunches to the other construction guys --- oh wait CA probably requires a environmental impact study for that and then there is the licensing and permits and --- good luck with that

Was the wedding a traditional Chinese wedding with multiple dinner courses and multiple wedding dresses or more western

I have a small gas grill to take with me Windpower. Good idea. I hope to make the guys hungry once in a while... maybe barbecue a steak or something.... Selling to others... this is the Peoples Republic of California... I think the health department wants to be involved in food sales ...but then... do I need to tell them?

Many Mexicans sell tamales and stuff without getting caught though...

The wedding was quite western in my opinion. Most of the Ceremony was in Chinese but with Translation of the important things or not easily understood and there was a good mix of English in there too. Most of my friends speak English as well as Chinese as they are mostly college students studying in English. Western kiss the bride... toss the bouquet and garter...

Google automatically makes gifs now on uploaded pix of close proximity to each other.... Songs in English or Chinese...most English I think.....

The meal was a gigantic buffet with mostly western food with some Asian such as sushi. One of the others at our table told Sassy it would have been cost prohibitive to make true Chinese food for such a large group of people. Probably 150 people there plus or minus - maybe 200....
I counted about 75 in one of the larger group photos but it was not all of those there by a long shot.

Looking through my Android Google uploads...

A decent panorama of the first phase of my job... I'll mostly be welding to the plates on the columns near ground level...

glenn kangiser · October 05, 2013, 03:15:56 PM

Sassy and I went to the International Student October dinner in Sacramento last night. First to see our old friends and then to meet new ones. Always a pleasure to get together with these kids.

Here's a shot of some of them who decided to have a group pix... but a lot had already left.

We don't just go for the food.... really....

In other news... I think I finally got the final papers into the engineer after we quizzed him to see what his cryptic message meant he needed... turns out is was only the specifications and procedures from Lincoln Company for their NR232 wire...

He said I needed to comply with the requirements of the alphabet soup agency providing the other information as specified in another alphabet soup agency... when quizzed for what it really meant because I told him I didn't have time for it to be returned again...it came down to him just needing the manual.....

glenn kangiser · October 08, 2013, 05:22:26 PM

Still waiting for approvals to go to work someday..... America is bogged down in red tape......

I started to haul wood chips in a few days ago... noise in the trailer ... busted wheel studs and figured out the wrong type wheels were on the trailer putting all of the weight on the studs - short explanation - Ford wheels on a Chevy axle ... center holes were too big even though the bolt pattern was right. [ouch]

Next heard rattling in the truck rear axle ... pulled off the plastic hub cover and a stud was busted under it.... ordered parts -- fixed them this morning ... now I am back to where I was last week.....

October 10, 2013, 02:37:54 PM

Still waiting for the god's of California construction to smile on me and tell me I can go to work......

In the meantime I got the truck fixed and took the tractor back down to the Chip pile.... managed to load 7 more loads without a major catastrophe....

That makes 9 loads at about 12 cu. yards each.. a lot of wood chips. I want to put some on the house and most on the future hugelkultur bed. While they are waiting for me to do that they can sit here and soak up water this winter... and decompose all they want ... at least this time I didn't miss out. Last time I was going to do this someone beat me to it with their own truck and tractor.

Yes ... I know... ugly but is is a dump trailer and it does haul lots of chips and other natural as well as unnatural resources. [ouch]

....other cool stuff??? .... well ...some kind of water bug or something decided to carry out it's life cycle by my pond and leave behind it's earthly body....

How cool is that?

And I have been missing Burma, so I made one of my favorite dishes from there... Hin Htote... with Chili Oil... (Spring Onion Cakes)

In Burma they make them over a charcoal or wood fire in an upright stove in many places... at least that was my most memorable one... In Aung Ban as I recall....

I found out it is authentic to put other things in it also, so added chopped sauteed bacon and caramelized onions with a couple cloves of garlic chopped and cooked in with them. Cherry Tomatoes along with a couple larger ones were from the garden. I also had some nice stewed tomatoes left over for dinner last night. Oh yes... taste best with plenty of salt.

I actually planned to make this after I got back and planted Banana trees so I would have Banana leaves to wrap it in. It is basically chopped green onions with stewed tomatoes mixed with rice flour to make a kind of dough then it is wrapped in Banana leaves and steamed until done. Saute some dried crushed chili's in peanut and sesame oil for the topping... ummmm good...

Rob_O · October 10, 2013, 10:28:30 PM

Quote from: glenn kangiser on October 08, 2013, 05:22:26 PMordered parts -- fixed them this morning ... now I am back to where I was last week.....

Sounds familiar, one day I hope to be a step ahead of the failure curve!

Antonio Carlos Machado · October 11, 2013, 12:49:24 PM

Hello Glenn, okay?
Beautiful pix, wedding and meals, give me that hunger!!!! As I am on a diet of those who have lost about 15 pounds.

I have to close the mouth and spying eyes.
Apparently a lot of work ahead of us, good luck in this endeavor!

glenn kangiser · October 11, 2013, 05:38:47 PM

Thanks Guys...

Still no word on the job except they are waiting for approvals... seems to be a lot of foot dragging going on. The foreman asked me when I was available to start today. I told him tomorrow... but he still doesn't have the approvals yet..... I told him to get the rebar up there so I could start prepping them while we were waiting then... hey... lets do something anyway..

Seems there should really only be about two guys you would have to jerk the chair out from under and drop them on the floor to get things moving... but ....they know that and they have the power to hold things up as long as they feel like it... that is just their job..... [ouch]

I called and told the administrator if they couldn't perform I was going to have to take something else.... however I was just trying to get a bit of action out of them.... I know the people I deal with want to get it going .. just too many layers of bureaucracy....

While waiting I keep trying to find things to work on .... here are the piles of wood chips waiting for me to straighten the logs in the ditch up and shove them over the side....

October 11, 2013, 07:15:39 PM

Well Glenn my friend,it's heck working at the speed of government.

Good to see all else is going well and ya'll are eating well.It's great to not have to depend on a job to feed the family.

glenn kangiser · October 11, 2013, 07:30:35 PM

I guess it could be worse... it could be Federal Government....

I wonder if this means that all of the NSA spies are not reading my comments or listening to my calls now.... ?

ben2go · October 11, 2013, 07:36:20 PM

Quote from: glenn kangiser on October 11, 2013, 07:30:35 PM
I guess it could be worse... it could be Federal Government....

I wonder if this means that all of the NSA spies are not reading my comments or listening to my calls now.... ?

I dunno,but I'm not letting my guard down.I sleep in my tin foil hat.

glenn kangiser · October 11, 2013, 07:42:07 PM

I think that is a good Idea..... [idea]

Mike Oehler and I were talking the other day and we heard a bunch of clicks and pops on the line... we were sure it was "them".....

Those guys need to invest in a little better equipment... we have their number...

ben2go · October 11, 2013, 08:02:05 PM

Quote from: glenn kangiser on October 11, 2013, 07:42:07 PM
I think that is a good Idea..... [idea]

Mike Oehler and I were talking the other day and we heard a bunch of clicks and pops on the line... we were sure it was "them".....

Those guys need to invest in a little better equipment... we have their number...

October 14, 2013, 12:05:04 AM

Progress on the job....

I got another schedule in the mail for the future.... though not approved for work yet....

....and another request to have my insurance company change the wording on my insurance for them.... Bureaucrats and red tape... I love it...

Even the dogs are getting tired of waiting....

Let's go dad....

glenn kangiser · October 15, 2013, 03:19:06 PM

I just got a call from the Jobsite....

Steel has been delivered.... only one more approval hoop to jump through and that should happen tomorrow.... I might actually get to go to work day after tomorrow

Think I'll have me a little Smoked Oyster and Tomato Pizza to celebrate.... Cooked it on the muffin pan for extra crispy.... Maybe just throw it on the rack next time I guess.... experimenting with the little convection oven. [ouch]

Antonio Carlos Machado · October 15, 2013, 05:37:00 PM

Yummy

glenn kangiser · October 15, 2013, 10:59:20 PM

Yup... it was good... just finished off the last of it.

Finally loaded the motorcycle into the back of the truck... it fit perfectly though I hadn't tried it before.. just laid out by measuring...

Wow... in the dark with the flash... it looks like the grapes of wrath.... fitting... we are in a depression....

Got word to come down and start laying out steel.... Still not approved to start welding by the last couple people but should get it tomorrow.... found out the state engineer approved me..... just a little more...

My apartment is ready for me if I show up tonight but think I will head out early in the morning --- too late now... [ouch]

glenn kangiser · October 17, 2013, 12:03:29 AM

Made it to the Joke... I mean the job.......

The OSHPD (Hospital Structural Inspector) is a ... ahem...."LADY" that only 2 of the job engineers are allowed to talk to... nobody else.. and they are afraid to..... or to disagree with... or to try to get results from... or anything.

.....because she has the power to stop the job no matter what the cost and she will do it.

Rather than approve my papers that have passed every other check, she told them she had the right to review them for 30 days..... and she may keep them that long... who knows. Likely at least 21days when she returns again. I doubt they will get action out of her via email because it looks like she is already mad at them about something else.

So I moved my stuff down here and into the apartment today... guess I move out in the morning so I can turn all of the welding wire back into the welding company for credit.... No need to hang onto $2000 worth of welding wire I am not allowed to use yet. I can get it again if I am on the job when she gets ready to say OK... Unless they work out a deal with the steel erector and have him do it........ [ouch] I guess we see what is up tomorrow.....

In the meantime... Union Pacific is getting ready to do some track upgrade...

I was over at Monolith this afternoon looking at the famous old plant....

Cool machines....

rick91351 · October 17, 2013, 12:43:10 AM

Glenn as you can imagine if you and I had what that Dyna-Cat was purchased for; we would never have to work another day. They in themselves are an engineering marvel.

http://www.plasseramerican.com/en/machines-systems/tamping-09-16-dyna-cat.html

Sorry to hear about your work assignment - so goes working in America today.

If we do not wake up to what is going on and effect a change we might as well just hang it up.

October 17, 2013, 11:28:43 AM

When I got back to town UP had a line of repair equipment a half a mile long there, Rick. I love this stuff....

I offered to let them out of the contract if they want to pay expenses which by now are in the thousands, otherwise I may be here next month... [ouch]

Women rule....

glenn kangiser · October 17, 2013, 11:33:13 AM

Cool info and video on the link you supplied, Rick. Thanks. I wondered what that thing did. I thought you would find it of interest.

rick91351 · October 17, 2013, 07:50:20 PM

The other Gizmotron lower photo is another type of tamper. I always want to have about an hour on one of those little Gizmocranes you first photo. They look like they are so fun to run.

BTW Number one Gizmotron is not a railroad term. Nor is Gizmocrane --- Thinking of Gary and I copywritting them......

BTW Number two where is Gary sort on AWOL I think he turned shy.....

BTW Number three that is some great looking track there. Very well maintained and very few tripping hazards that I see.

I still do not miss it in the least bit.... Past life...... Now if I am up at 03:00 It is on my own accord not sitting behind some throttle stand beating my head on the side window drinking coffee and energy drinks to stay awake.

Sort of bugs me that I do not miss it........

glenn kangiser · October 18, 2013, 01:25:28 AM

I haven't seen ol' Gary for a while but I have a hard time getting here myself anymore too. I try to catch the spammers when I can find them and post a little bit of stuff here.

Lately most of my time is occupied with this job. I decided to return the wire for credit as I didn't need an extra 15 hundred bucks worth of wire in my truck. On the way back I was thinking about some repairs that needed to be done on the columns and I used to work for the company that made the steel, subcontracting, so I stopped there on the way back and talked to them. I picked up another contract for a weeks work with them and I already have the apartment so I'm not out any room and board except food. I called the foreman of the project and talked to him and apparently either the two page letter I sent in this morning or something else made them mad enough to somehow get around that lady and it looks like that job is going to go also. The repair work on the columns is grinding for where I have to put all my rebars because they put extra weld there and it was supposed to be ground off....

I offered to do it for a reasonably cheap rate since I was there anyway. They made me a little cheaper counter offer and we agreed on it so I have extra work there and some extra money :-) that will give the other guys time to get their stuff together or I will do both jobs at the same time. Doesn't matter because I'm getting one price for it anyway.

Windpower · October 18, 2013, 08:03:37 AM

I don't miss work either, Rick --- yes it is strange

I get up at sunrise or earlier and just go to work on the house

Glenn, sorry to hear about your hassles but I guess that is the construction industry now (I have my own 'issues' with building inspectors) anyway it is good to hear that you can finally go to work after all your preparations.