Weekend

[Joel J.]

   Well the weekend is here and it is somewhat cool in Seattle ...will be in the 70's today, which is great for me, good to work around the place in.

I dreamed about hunting crystals the last hour of the night last night..was getting some great ones..it was a great dream to wake from...big stones but none were clear, they all had imperfections. I dreamed this in part because I stuck some crystals into the mortar of a river rock barbecue I am making. It has been four years in the making, I work on it a little every year. You have to let it dry and go back to it. I just formed the arch on the fireplace part of the barbecue, it will have an oven above that which I will work on today for bread and pizza. It has two fire pits on each side of the main structure like wings that I will use for general cooking, like the old time outdoor brick cook stoves. I have no plans just create as I go, I have worked a lot with stones and motar so all is going well. I wished I could take more time but I need to finish this project..it has gone on too long as it is.

I was saying I stuck crystal into spots between the river rock in my project...I am counting on my grand kids to be taking a hammer and break those off..it is just something a kid would do..I am prophesying it will happen. Neighbor kids chipped out the Chuckie Cheese coins I put in other projects around our yard   Kids are kids. I have added many of my pretty cut rocks to my project..its fun for me.

I am getting the place quite looking nice, I have felt good, I think it has to do with the weather being so nice. I would have moved South long ago it it were not for having a business here which I am very grateful.Next I am going to start cutting hedge and that is real work. Maybe I will finish the barbie first, then it will be done..it will have 4 chimneys...if I am hard up for cash I will be able to sweep them and charge the family budget...always thinking ahead!

We just have not cooked outside as much..the boys are always in transit and we never know who will be home for dinner...they are headed for the air show today and one to someone house on a lake. So we do not have empty nest yet more like Grand Central nest. My job is pushing leftovers. I still say we will be able to retire on savings from our food bill.

Ok, I better put my money were my mouth is and get crackin'...later gang!

[Mark E. Dial]

 I dream I will need about 2-300 acres of land to build a home with an elevator to an upper floor. From there I can take my lighted gondola threw fake rock and by water falls to my Science center there you can watch the weather from the station, watch genetic engineer bio luminance into trees and plants for the grounds so they glow at night, look at deceptive moon and mars pictures and other art works. From there the gondola takes one to my shops. Work on wood, electrical, leather, photos, computers, embroidery, auto kitting, ceramics, like a shop for cutting and polishing stones, I might put in a six place test kitchen a place for six or so to gather to cook like apartment kitchen side by side. Likely my music room will be in my house with the player pianos and other instruments if not in a separate building with a stage to work on. I might put in a recording studio as people come over all the time. I likely will have green house to ride to for non G.M. crops. A solarium, library etc. It all likely would set up like a Disney park. So one part is futuristic art and the other part different. I might even have electric cars that move by a button by RFID chips in the roads to travel on in the park if not other ideas to move around come up. Being a large area parking would not be a problem when there are classes.

I like my dream at least.   

[Joel J.]

 

I dreamed about hunting crystals the last hour of the night last night..was getting some great ones..it was a great dream to wake from...big stones but none were clear, they all had imperfections. I dreamed this in part because I stuck some crystals into the mortar of a river rock barbecue I am making. It has been four years in the making, I work on it a little every year. You have to let it dry and go back to it. I just formed the arch on the fireplace part of the barbecue, it will have an oven above that which I will work on today for bread and pizza. It has two fire pits on each side of the main structure like wings that I will use for general cooking, like the old time outdoor brick cook stoves. I have no plans just create as I go, I have worked a lot with stones and motar so all is going well. I wished I could take more time but I need to finish this project..it has gone on too long as it is.

I have been working on this everyday since I first reported on it. I am 80 % finished after putting in about 6 hours a day. I have worn the skin off the end of two fingers playing with the mortar too much rather than using a tool so I will have to do something else today..I can clean up the area and I need to go get more river rock. I bought 8 more bags of mortar and 60 firebrick yesterday.

I am forming the arch in the pizza/bread oven today and have to research if I need to use all firebrick in it, if I get that done today I will be happy it is the last real hurdle and then I can experiment with having fires and what happens and how much heat the  ovens generate..hopefully nothing goes really wrong.

I made an ash trap for the pizza oven which causes the ashes and fire to be pushed out of the back and down the chimney of the fireplace below..I thought of it just at the last second as I was building it...I do not have to scoop out ashes before the pizza goes in then just push them out the back.. That will make it nice.

Having fun. Thanks for the ear.

[Helen]

Joel, does this mean that you won't be selling any of your rocks on Normandy Dr. this year?  I was looking forward to some new prospects for my garden if you did.  Your barbecue sounds great, a worthy project indeed.

[Joel J.]

Thanks!

[Joel J.]

  Well I roasted a couple chickens cut up tonight. I use charcoal briquettes and fill in with some maple, had a great fire going perfect coals.

Selling a truck down at DW and some guy calls and says he wants it right at dinner and will call back in one hour going to get the money..he never called..always cracks me up how it is at dinner time.

 It has been hot here, we blew a fuse and it was not the fuse so we investigated and it was a bad plug in my son's room. It is the power to the kitchen and route through his room, an old house go figure. Thank you Lord we figured it out.

Anyway I just heated sugar beans, canned potatoes, canned carrots and canned corn in a big skillet on the barbie and we ate..always fun to Q and eat outside when it is roasting hot.

We were all headed to South Center to a movie but it was sold out of cheap tickets so we stayed home and I played my middle boy five games of ping pong until we were tired and it was dark.

Oh how I love this weather, and we in Seattle love it double because it in only here for three months.

Hope everyone is enjoying summer!

[Mark E. Dial]

I can understand why you would build an oven for pizza. As to many ovens are not wide enough or hot enough to cook one correctly. I also smile at your old house electric problems. I had a friend who built an house with additional power outlets all over it. Seeing that ever year a new thing needs to be plugged in, and all the aggravation with wiring in series in old homes. I would do the same even if it looked a little odd.  It is illegal to uses fuses in homes in most cities today it has to be a breaker box or its a fine if the code man sees it.

The one thing I never asked you is about true European fireplaces. The costly ones that have baffles so they stay warm with little firewood for 16 hours. Do state burn bans apply to them?

[Joel J.]

  Mark..

The pizza oven I am making is for the wood fired thin crust pizza which is all the rage right now. I am making it just because I need a project and I love to experiment. These ovens cook a pizza in 90 seconds or at least in a couple minutes.

Yes all fireplaces are  under federal burn ban rules..the Russian fireplaces are not the way to go in my opinion..they are expensive and  take to much wood for the amount of heat they produce..I imagine they cooked in them and heated water in them as  they had a fire going all day during the turn of the century in the winter months and before. Then it might be worth it to have one...now a days a simple wood stove centrally placed is the best bet.

[Mark E. Dial]

From what I read these fireplaces use little wood at all. Just a 1/2 hour fire and it will heat a room for hours 12-16. They heat up the bricks that keep the place warm. They even come in kits. They could be made to heat by gas. I never priced them but I know they are high.