We anchored out in our cove last night with Marty & Sue, and Kurt & Kevin. This morning I paddled around to check on the 2 geocaches that I have hidden along the shore there. The first one was still there, just above the highest level of floodwater. I lifted a rock and found it. Right next to it was critter I would rather not have come across!
White Russians, all around! Vodka, Kahlua & milk over ice. We’re channeling The Dude.
The lake levels are dropping from the 693′ levels from earlier this week. Lake Travis was reopened today. It’ll need to get to about 683′ before we have power on our docks restored. But we’ll probably head out there this weekend anyway. The shot below is of the downstream side of Lake Travis’ Mansfield Dam, with 3 flood gates open, from last weekend. What a difference a year makes!
A friend of mine recently sold her house and moved into a condo in downtown Austin. Her view is amazing.
Yesterday was National Chocolate Ice Cream Day! I did my part to celebrate. Did you?
Gorgeous, even though we only have a few.
Today was one of our first days on the lake this year! Usually we’ve been tearing it up for several months already. But life has keps us both busy. Julie and Ryan joined us for the day. We were excited to see Marty and Sue and their beautiful new boat!
We both went out for a sail in light winds. It was nice to be out there – a beautiful sunny day.
Back at the marina, we enjoyed watching the setting sun together. The lake is at 683.66, several feet over full. The water is flooding parts of the parking lot at the marina. A site we have not seen for 6 years or more. The flood gates on the dam will be opened on Monday to lower Lake Travis a bit, as more rain is expected next week. I have not forgotten the feeling that many years of drought brought, but to see the lake brimming is truly a sight to see.
I’m going to have to learn to tell these guys apart.
Hummingbird Nectar Recipe
- Mix 4 parts water with 1 part granulated sugar in a saucepan and heat until sugar is dissolved and the mixture reaches a light boil for a minute or two. Let cool before filling feeders.
First snaps of the hummingbird feeder with the Olympus. Playing with focus, aperture and shutter speed.
Done.
Lots of action in the backyard this weekend.
I don’t usually care much for the mourning doves, as they aggressively hog the feeders. But I like the color around the eyes of this dove.
Red-winged blackbird:
Red-bellied woodpecker:
Bluejay:
Beautiful, red cardinal:
I was on campus tonight to join an old college roommate and her family watch one of her daughters in a dance competition. And her team won!
I caught a quick shot of the UT Tower. It is lit up in orange tonight; for Honors Day. Hook ’em!
By the way, if you ever want to know what the occasion is for a lit up tower, checkout this link. And a background on the university tradition of lighting the tower here.
Yikes, my last post was on March 3rd! I’ve been a tad busy. Since then, life has happened. I have been taking pictures along the way. Let me bring you up to speed:
– My 6th blogoversary! Six years ago I started sheila365.com. I’m not as diligent as I used to be about posting, and my posts have gotten less photo-worthy, but I do enjoy it. How time flies!
– Celebrated a friend’s birthday – this shot is from the lobby of the Hotel Van Zandt downtown. I accidentally left my Harvard Business School umbrella in the restaurant there. Oh well. 😦
– Lots of little birdies out back. I think I have 9 feeders out, altogether. I love watching them.
– We have been dealing with battery problems on Nirvana for the last couple of months. Ok, I’m using the “Royal We” there. Short story: our batteries crapped out on the boat. The charger was apparantly kaput as well. Monte has been researching chargers and new deep-cycle house batteries to keep our floating second home powered while we’re not hooked up to shore power. We have since ordered, and Monte has installed, all the various bits and pieces, and this is a snapshot of the voltmeter on the control panel down below after the installation. All is well! I think we will be anchoring out before too long!
– Work took me to Raleigh all last week. I have been taking advantage of the Austin Library’s on-line e-book and audio-book collection that can be easily checked out via the accompanying Overdrive app. On this trip, I checked out the audio book for Steinbeck’s Travels with Charley – a story about a roadtrip he took across the country with his poodle in the early 60’s. The jury is still out on how much I enjoyed it.
– It rained in Raleigh. Monte’s birthday also happened while I was there – the first that I haven’t been home to celebrate with him.
– I flew home home on Saint Patrick’s Day. Slainte!
– And then it rained some more in Austin. After MANY years of drought, and a little help from last year’s El Niñ0, Lake Travis is officially full now at 681′ above mean sea level. Hallelujah!
– Once I was back in Austin, we celebrated Monte’s birthday at a favorite restaurant. Baked Alaska for dessert!
– And, this weekend we worked in the yard and welcomed in the first day of spring!
Now you are up to date. 🙂
Last week I was using my treadmill when the motor unexpectedly stopped. In the days since then, I have learned more than I ever wanted to know about the inner workings of my treadmill (a 12 year old, well-loved Schwinn 845P).
The important bits under the cover include the digital display console, a hydraulic incline motor, a DC motor that drives the belt, a sensor that measures the speed at which the treadmill’s belt is turning, and an electronic board that controls all these things.
The symptom: The motor and belt just stopped abruptly during a workout. The console still works. The incline motor works as well. Any time I subsequently turn the treadmill back on, the console lights up, prompting for the usual inputs. Then when I press the start button, I hear a “click” after which the motor used to start-up, but now doesn’t. And after a few seconds the console just displays the message “Err LS” (looks also like “Err L5”) which apparently stands for Loss of Speed, which is an error message related to a number of different failures. I had to figure out which component had failed, causing that error.
Disclaimer: I am in no way suggesting you do this at home yourself. I’m not an expert.
The patient:
The diagnostic process in my case:
The consensus diagnosis: Through process of elimination, the problem appears to be a failed control board (motor control board, actually). Apparantly this is a very common failure on treadmills of all makes and models.
The fix: I found a website called FitnessBoardsDirect, that carries such things. The replacement for my motor control board (P/N QQ 2197) is a new-from-the-manufacturer item, not a refurbished one. I called them as well. A guy named Nick answered the phone and was very nice and helpful; he confirmed the diagnosis and gave me a little more confidence that the item I would order might actually fix my problem. So, I decided to shell out $225 plus shipping for a replacement motor control board. Not cheap, but much less expensive than a new treadmill – a comparable new model retails for $800-$1000, depending on who you buy it from.
My replacement board arrived tonight and I installed it, and it worked. I’m back in business! 🙂
Sheila365 