Popular Mechanics?

    These have been hanging around in my iPhoto for a while. I stumbled across these old articles from ancient issues of Popular Mechanics--there were more but you get the idea...




     The inflatable "trunks" are especially attractive. I started to wonder why they call them "trunks" anyway and found this on Yahoo answers...

"I think it derives from the term 'trunk hose' used in the 16th and 17th centuries to describe the full, baglike breeches worn by men, covering the body from the waist to the middle of the thigh or lower, sometimes having stockings attached in one piece.
Seems a logical derivation to shorten in recent times to 'trunks'?"

   Hose? Baglike? Trunk? Seems perfectly logical to me. I then googled "vintage swimwear" and found this. Obviously chicks dig a guy rockin' a pipe in his Jantzens...


     This definitely isn't vintage (I don't think) but it somehow seemed worth a post...

The Barbeque...

     It may be because I've spent most of my life apartment living and never had a place to do it  (I'm almost sure I wouldn't bother anyway) but I've never understood the male fascination/obsession with the barbeque. I was in Home Depot the other day with a buddy and as we walked past the barbecues he made some comment on the grill and workings of this particular brand. I know absolutely next to nothing about gas barbecues, I don't want to learn and all my cooking is done in the kitchen, thank you-- so I just sort of glazed over and said, "Oh really? I did not know that." I did notice that the price was $1400 and he really wanted to buy this one but he had just spent $1200 on last years model. I have another friend that spent $65oo on one...

    When we were kids the first barbeque we had was the Hibachi...

     We probably picked one up for fairly cheap at Safeway along with a bag of Kingsford charcoal briquets...


    During the summer months Dad would often fire up the Hibachi and barbeque some steaks for Mom and him and burgers for my sister and I. Maybe it's all in my nostalgic head but I've never had a burger like the ones Dad charred in the backyard. It was all about waiting for the coals to heat up and the combination of the flavours imparted from the lighter fluid, smoke from the briquets and Kraft BBQ sauce that produced a burger that was second to none. Toast the bun and top with a Kraft slice, French's mustard and green pickle relish...fantastic. Some nights he would even split some weiners, throw them on the grill and then top the hamburger patty with them...heaven. I'm not sure if Dad made up the name but he called them "Combo Burgers." 

    From the Hibachi it wasn't long before we  moved up to this classic...


     The shitty thing was it was my job to dump the ashes in the garbage and scrub the grills and utensils in the concrete laundry sink, next to the wringer washer in our half-finished basement every time we wanted to barbeque...what a chore. I really knew we hit the big time though when we got the Ball-B-Que...

   There the beauty is right behind Sis and I, I think I was the first day of grade 9 for me and 6 for Wendy...


     I don't really have much else to add and I'm not even sure how to wrap this up other than to say the gas barbeque at the top of this blog is worth $35,ooo--that could buy an awful lot of briquets, you still have to clean it and the memories...

The Electrician...

     I was at work today when the electrician showed up about 1:00 PM or so. We've only worked with each other on this particular job so I don't really know him that well but we did sort of bond around the fact that we both hate our tattoos and regret getting them--but that's another story. As he walked past me he said, "I'm so hungover today, I shouldn't even be here" and kept going (he had actually said this to me a few days earlier and I jokingly replied, "Everyday...").

     About half an hour had gone by when I thought I'd ask him, "What's hungover? 10 or 12 drinks?" He sort of grunted and walked on by. A little while later I decided on another attempt at conversation so I asked him. "Drinking tonight?" To which he promptly replied, "No, I've been on a four day bender, I've been drinking since Friday with the "old lady." (He's probably 40 or so but I'm always surprised how often I hear "the old lady" or "the wife" on the job--even from younger guys). 

    I proceeded to ask him if he just stayed at home and drank to which his answer was, "Yeah, me and the old lady ain't been gettin' along lately." I immediately said, tongue in cheek, "There's nothing like a four day bender to sort out your relationships problems." He didn't really seem to "get it" and simply replied, "Yeah, until you sober up." All that came to mind for me after that was, "Aah... ain't love grand."-- and this classic by by Elvin Bishop...you only need to listen to the first line...

Vancouver This Morning (I've Got To Use This Zoom Lens For Something)...

“I've Been Doing A Lot Of Abstract Painting Lately, Extremely Abstract. No Brush, No Paint, No Canvas, I Just Think About It.” Stephen Wright...

     There's an old joke that circulates among trades people that goes something like, "What's the first job you get when you're released from prison?"....."Drywaller."

  

     Being a self employed painting contractor, the first time somebody told me that joke I was positive the punch line was going to be "painter"-- I'm sure the two professions could be interchangeable on the trades hierarchy, there's plenty of wild-asses in both to go around.

     I've heard all the knocks against people in the painting "profession.";  "If you can piss, you can paint." and my personal favorite, "Not all drunks are painters but all painters are drunks." I also read in an article on alcoholism that had in it, "Quite often alcoholics get jobs such as traveling salesman and "house painter" so they have the freedom to drink at work." Ouch. And while I'm never adverse to having a few, just not on the job.

   Believe me, I completely understand how we acquired this reputation but I would like to say also that there is way more to becoming a well rounded painter that most people know. Luckily for you I won't bore you with any of those details but if you've ever tried any painting yourself, you may have a bit of an idea.

    I've had a variety of jobs in my life but for some reason painting stuck (survival maybe?). I've been at it for almost twenty years, still love the job (some of the people I've met I could have done without), have an excellent client base and have never had to advertise--all of our contacts are word of mouth, which is still the best advertising. 

    I googled painting quotes, and while none had anything to do with "house" painting some were interesting none the less...

“Anyone who sees and paints a sky green and fields blue ought to be sterilized.” Adolph Hitler

“Painting is easy when you don't know how, but very difficult when you do.” Edgar Degas

“I consciously choose the dog's path through life. I shall be poor; I shall be a painter...” Vincent Van Gogh

“Every artist dips his brush in his own soul, and paints his own nature into his pictures.” Henry Ward Beecher

“I experience a period of frightening clarity in those moments when nature is so beautiful. I am no longer sure of myself, and the paintings appear as in a dream” Vincent Van Gogh

“I paint objects as I think them, not as I see them.” Pablo Picasso

 

    I just thought of  a quote of my own, "The interior new house could run you anywhere from $3.50 to $4.50 a square foot (floor space), depending on the amount of woodwork, colours, brand of paint, etc"...

    

Along The Sea To Sky Highway...

       14th hole on Furry Creek...

         Shannon Falls...

      

      Mirrin Lake...

      

      Brittania Beach...