Still Kicking

Well I am still alive. Barely but kicking. Actually it is not that bad. I just completed a move into a house from a condo. I hate moving. God the packing. You really do not know how much crap you have until you move. All of a sudden it seems to expand to every available nook and cranny. Seriously. How can a condo require two 5X10 storage lockers and still have a ton of stuff back in the condo. There was no furniture stored there. At least I now got a work bench to start working on the boats again. So let’s see what I have in the fleet:

SMS Prinz Eugen is battle ready. Some minor tweaking of cannons and testing of systems. All battle damage from last has been repaired.

USS Alabama is back under construction (for the third year in a row). The old balsa has been stripped. It needs new water channeling installed. Also repairs need to be made to the deck. A cross brace has broken. A new cannon kit was purchased during the winter and the canons would need to be installed. Also pump needs to be installed.

USS South Carolina was in retirement. i think I am going to take her out of retirement and run her. it needs two cannons, pump and regulator.

DKM Graf Spee is just a hull. This year it will be cut. I have the hardware kit. No cannons and other stuff. I need more sintra  to create deck and super structure

HMCS Prince Robert. the hull is cut but no gear. It will remain that way for this year. I might build as a runner.

Also I am planning to obtain another hull. My thoughts are either a Tennessee, A QE class British battleship or get the Espana.

I am drawn to the Class 4 warship. I just love the small boats.In 2006 it sank the most feared vessel in the hobby of the IJN Nagato. of course I sunk first. Having no working pump will do that.

Still Alive

Well I am still alive. It has been busy since I moved to tech support. A day that is 8.5 hrs can some times be a 10 hr day. It is not too bad. The only pain in the ass are the calls that deal with Mac. Mac might be cool but don’t expect the world to revolve around you when 95% of everything else is designed for a Windows environment. And of course all these Macusers get bent out of shape when they are told they need a dedicated Windows environment to resolve their technical issues.  For example if you need an app load you need a Windows pc. No ifs ands or buts about it. Screaming at me that we did not bow down to your decision to spend $$$$ on a system nobody makes a lot of software for does not help. The second bitch is that Mac produces errors that are cryptic. You might as well get Sherlock Holmes on the case to figure it out. At least with Windows it may crap out but there is a defined message and support article for it. An Error 1 skipping with PocketMac and an Error 3 skipping are two different issues. Then of course which leaves me the the wireless carriers. Instead of telling you that you need a Windows based PC they decide they will transfer you off to some one else to tell you it. What a bunch of douche bags.

I hate Freaking Snow

Ok I will say it. I have fucking snow.  A nice New Year’s Blizzard to ring in 2009. Well it proves once again that Al Gore and his band of enviro-scammers are wrong.  So i spent yesterday inside watching some movies. of course the movies were so bad that I shut them off about half way through. The first one was Star Wars: Clone Wars. It made absolutely no sense and well that got shut off. Then second was Cloverfield. I am sorry but I loathe movies that are shot from the perspective of a camcorder. It reminds me of the Blair Witch project. I hated that movie. It sucked. So that one lasted about halfway through. i could have watched more if they dropped the camcorder schtick. But I digress.

It is 2009. i wonder how many people made resolutions. Mine has always been never to make resolutions.

So here is the SMS Prinz Eugen. It will start it’s second season under my command. The year 2009 will be it’s first full season. I am hoping to get down to Rhode Island for IRCWCC NATS this year. And who knows the USS South Carolina (BB26) may come out of retirement.

Off to Tech Support

First of all I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I know it is late but I have been busy.

Speaking of busy. I will now be moving into tech support. yep. Out of customer care and into the wolf pit of troubleshooting. The product is the ever lovable and addictive BlackBerry. I am looking forward to it.

The price of gas dropped this week. It dropped to a shocking 69.6 cents a litre. Whoo Hoo. Drop baby drop.

Rememberance Day

Thank a Vet for your freedom.

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

— Lt.-Col. John McCrae

United Soviet States of America

Well it is a week until the US Election. The choices could not be more crucial. But the choices are so ho hum.

There is the empty suit Barrack Obama. Does anyone  know what he stands for? I mean other than the usual “change” mantra. Change?  Loose change? Of course it is highly convenient that the MSM seems to have already thrown their hats on the obama bandwagon. Nothing like doing their jobs but then again if they annoyed “the one” that they would lose access.  Then of course the phrase” spreading the wealth” should  give you shivers.  When governments say spread the wealth, it means you are going to pay more in taxes. And more taxes until you are now “poor”. Of course you just won’t be the “official” poor. You know. The people that groups such as ACORN claim to represent.

Then there is McCain. He would spend money like a drunken Democrat. it just wouldn’t be as bad. My question is. if you want to spend money or your priority items, what items will you cut? No politician will say what he have to cut. I mean that makes too much sense. If they don’t  say they will cut then all is well with the world.

As always, if you don’t vote, don’t bitch at how the results turned out.

Election Day

Well today is Election day. What a load of farm grade choices to choose from.

Elizabeth May:  all I can say is that she is a nut who screams green but for some reason is probably Liberal Red. Would it surprise me that she has made some more “deals” with Dion.

Stephane Dion: Go back to what ever work had the  regret at hiring you. Academics is not real work.

Jack Layton: Please go back to Toronto. After all it is not like you know what work is. I would like to know what income lever you need to become “rich” so that the NDP can then soak you for every dime.

Steven Harper: about as warm and cuddly as a cactus in the arctic. Please don’t hurt yourself with a smile. Thye medical bills alone should you display some personality would be monumental.

Gilles Duceppe: Don’t we have treason laws somewhere?

The important thing is to Vote. if you don’t vote then don’t bitch as to why things didn’t turn out the way you want it.

CANNATS X

Well CANNATs X is approaching. It is less than 2 weeks to go. The Price Eugen has arrived and is ready to go. The USS Alabama is not quite there. I am in the process of re-sheeting and painting. The balsa has been  glued on but now it has to be bondo’d. What is Bondo you may ask. Bondo is the automotive body filler. It is great for sealing cracks. Once the balsa has been bondo’s it will be sanded and then painted. I am hoping to paint on Thursday. That is if the F^&%^&% rain will hold off.

Weekend Work Sucks!!!!

Whomever decides our schedules should be forced to eat a 10 ton pile of dog shit. Three FUCKING weekends in a row. What kind of lunacy is that I am pissed beyond belief. More later. Work beckons

The Southy will rise again

Well I took the plunge. I brought the USS South Carolina off the shelf and started looking at what I would need to get it on the water. Just as an aside the USS South Carolina (would have been the world’s first all big gun Battleship but the US Congress held up funding) is listed as BB26.  Her Sister ship was BB27 the USS Michigan.

Anyways i took a look at what needs to be done. Remarkably very little needs to be done. When i mean little I mean nothing major.  What it means is I have to purchase three servos. I have the cannons for the boat. It would be a matter of installing the guns and then plumb in the pneumatics. Some of the pneumatics  can be installed before the cannons go in as it will be all on quick disconnects. So I figure It will take me about an hour to install 3 cannons. Pneumatics will be about another 30-40 minutes.

The servos can be cheaply obtained and then it is a matter of tool dipping them to make sure they are waterproof. That takes about a day as there is drying time. Actually it really can be used 2 hrs after it is dipped soonce I get the servos I will dip them before I go to bed. Installing the servos is about 30 minutes.

The only delay in getting the boat combat ready is the lack of a regulator.  the PE has my other regulator and CO2 bottle so I have to wait until it arrives back before I can test the pneumatics for leaks

I hope this will be a smooth quick rebuild.