Panoramic Photo of Early Pine Lake (Click to Enlarge)

Wind*ws and D**rs

IF YOU ARE LOOKING TO LEAVE SPAM IN THE COMMENTS OF THIS POST, DON'T BOTHER. I WILL REMOVE YOUR SALES-RELATED COMMENTS IMMEDIATELY.

I am using replacing the w and d words with w*nd*ws and d**rs in hopes of reducing the frequency of the frigging spam comments, which are still rolling in after years.


With homes in the city being broken into with depressing regularity, it's prudent to secure your home.

Sash locks and deadbolts can help.

Available at Home Depot, Lowe's, and Ace Hardware, sash locks allow you to secure your w*nd*ws with key locks; most allow you to lock them closed or partially open (of course not open enough to allow someone to crawl through). They sell for about $15 per w*nd*w. I good a good deal on four with identical keys on eBay.

They're fairly easy to install; all you need is an electric drill with bits of the proper size and a screwdriver.

Sash locks won't stop thieves from smashing out the w*nd*w frame and entering your home, but it will stop them from being able to slide open your window (even if they break the glass) and gain easy entry.

D**db*lts make it more difficult for thieves to kick in a d**r because they create an additional point of reinforcement. I have double d**db*lts on both my d**rs, meaning k*ys are required on both sides. I don't lock the d**db*lts when I'm inside the house, but when I'm away, even for a short trip to the grocery, I do.

With s*sh l*cks and d**db*lts the only way a thief is getting into my house is by smashing in my d**rs (not as easy as it looks in the movies) or hammering out an entire divided w*nd*w. This can of
course be done, but thieves are looking for easy marks and don't want to be taking sledgehammers to houses.

Monitored home alarms are good, but I would consider securing my
d**rs and w*nd*ws first.

Spring Really Brings Out the Wildlife

This Sasquaetch Was Recently Seen in the Eastern Wetlands

Is There a Pine Lake Monster?

Pine Lake Post Office

Photo By Claude Suttle

Here's a picture from the 1950s of Pine Lake's original post office. The building still stands across Rockbridge, just down a ways from the new P.O. It's easy to recognize not only by the shape but because some of the USPS signage is still on the facade.

I at first thought the photo was from the '60s, but its not.

How do I know?

That another look at the building. Do you see a zip code? Zip Codes were introduced in 1963 and were prominently displayed. Part of the 30072 signage is still visible on the building. Take a look next time you drive down Rockbridge.

But wait! I said the building pre-dated. How do I know that?

Hehe. Count the stars on the flag.

Yep, there are 48.

Since Hawaii and Alaska became states in 1959, the photo must be from the '50s

Spring Gets Underway at the New Jersey Botanical Gardens

Pine Lake Lion's Club Turkey Shoot

Fixing Up the Miata

I'm glad I'm able to fix stuff.

In January I got busy on my 15-year-old Miata, too. I'd been driving it for a year with the skin of the muffler wired on; I found a stainless steel muffler on eBay and had it installed. The car suddenly developed a miss, so I ran some injector cleaner through it; when that didn't work I put in new plugs. When it still ran badly, I bought new plug wires and installed them. That did the trick. She runs like a champ now.

I had the Miata washed and waxed, and then detailed it, touching up the was as I went. The windshield washers were plugged, so I ordered new ones (not cheap!) from Jim Ellis Mazda, since cheap generic washer nozzles wouldn't work. I replaced some rubber vacuum hoses which had gone rigid with age, ordered and installed a new plastic cover for the inside door latch, and lubed the power window buttons, which had begun to operate intermittently.

Fixing Up the House

Old houses require a lot of repair, and I'd been neglecting mine for years. It was in need, of, among other things, a good wash and window cleaning, and the fallen leaves and ivy had taken over the yard.

When I returned home on January 12 the weather was fine and I had no excuse to put things off. I got to work.

Beaver Proofing

The new trees are all beaver-proofed so this won't happen:

Who? Me?

Egg Hunt

These Sisters Were Adorable. The Older Took Good Care of the Younger.

On Saturday morning my friend Rena sent me a text message to let me know she was on the way to the city-- with children. Why? Easter Egg Hunt!

There's Nothing Sweet About Sweet Gum Balls

Bill Cotter just posted this blogpost about sweet gum balls, repossessed houses, and disappearing banks. Check it out. Check out his other essays as well.

Clematis

Martha Renfroe-Garner recently asked on one of the city lists if someone would stop by her house and take photos of her clematis.

So I did.