Steve finally got around to checking the squeely rear brakes on Sandy. Worn down, as expected. Fortunately, the local parts store had original shoes in stock for a fair price. They didn't, however, have springs nor the little springs that hold the shoes down... so we had to wait a day or two to go to Liberia to get those. The parts store "had" them, but not really. The return springs were wrong. Shoulda known better than to go without the old part. Oh well. On the plus side, we got the drums turned in about an hour at the machine shop, total price was about $20. One of the interesting things about the project was that despite having used a 5"x7" wooden board under the jack to help it stay stable, the ground in the driveway is soft enough that the jack and board sunk about three inches. Since we don't have jackstands (this is a do as I say not do as I do kinda thing- working on a vehicle on a jack is stupid. Don't do it) Steve used two hi-lifts on the bumper and the bottle jack out of Bubba to help stabilize the load, then a cinder block under the axle to help eliminate the sinking problem. Ugly, but it worked.
We also bought a toothbrush for Calypso because 'doggy breath' isn't anywhere near as fun as 'puppy breath'. No, she can't really do it herself, but she does seem to enjoy chewing on it.

Labels: landcruiser, photo, weather

Hard to believe that is has been seven years since we got married. If the next seven are even half as fun as the first have been, we'll still be luckiest people around.

Since our about-a-year-and-a-half-old nephew's only comment regarding our website is apparently: "Caly barks, more." I took a few minutes out of helping Jocelyn slave in the kitchen to make this little video. Enjoy it Spencer, we miss you.

Labels: dog

Yep. We keep feedin' her, she keeps growing. Vet says she is up to 14kg now (around 31 pounds). We find that shocking, but it goes a long way towards explaining why we can't carry her around in the palm of one hand anymore. Now stop buggin' me for new pictures of the dog. Sheesh.

Labels: dog

Finally, the wait is over! Not only was the surf small enough that Steve was willing to forgo surfing in order to take pictures, AND Bb was there too, AND the weather was beautiful, AND it wasn't too crowded (who needs a buncha tourists in the pictures?) BUT we even remembered the camera. Which helps. A lot. So, without further fanfare, we present to you: a few surfing photos, by Steve

Here goes Bb...	...and she's up!	Our pal Jerry walks to the nose while Bb paddles back out

Unfortunately the batteries ran out before Bb could take pics of Steve surfing. We'll just have to keep our gaze pointed offshore, waiting for another batch of photos.

Labels: photo, surf

Here is a nice little primer for anyone looking to take a trailer off road. Our offroad trailer experience was terrible. Simply terrible. It had a lot to do with us not knowing what we were doing, and the trailer manufacturer being either incompetent or dishonest... but you can't win 'em all!

Go to climateprediction.net and you can donate your leftover cpu speed to helping model climate change on our lovely little planet.

Left, right, rich, poor, tree hugger, warmonger.... doesn't really matter: more computer power means more models means maybe we can get a clearer picture of what is happening. If we have that, maybe someone in the right office can make some relevant decisions and we can stop wasting so much time debating the basis of the facts that currently shape policy.

Efficiency, see? Everyone benefits.