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Here's to hoping you had a good one!!! |
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This comment was posted today in response to a "no start" problem with a 1940s era Ford 9N farm tractor.
Another way to answer your question: air serves as a dialectric in the spark plug. High voltage (you DO know about the secondary on that coil, right?) causes the dialectric to break down, permitting current flow.
This creates a plasma arc, which we interpret as the "spark", and which emits visable light. The frequency of light that the arc emits is directly variable with the amount of energy that produces the plasma arc.
In other words, all other factors being equal, a healthy ignition system creates plasma which tends to radiate a relatively greater amount of light toward the ultra-violet end of the spectrum, which looks blue.
A weaker system that cannot provide as much energy creates a plasma arc that tends to emit lower-frequency light, closer to the infra-red part of the spectrum, which looks orange-ish.
This is one reason why I like to leave the points in my Farmall. When a civillian freind sees the Farmall, and they ask "What the heck is THAT?," I can look them in the eye and say, "It's a gasoline-powered plasma generator from the 'fifties..." |
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Hope you have a fantasticilicious birthday! |
| » Elm's Last Stand |
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Apr. 12th, 2007 @ 11:46 am
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| » (No Subject) |
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An over zealous caretaker has put out pansies in the flowerboxes of the 3-story condo across the street.
It has snowed a couple of inches this morning. More expected on Saturday.
Apr. 11th, 2007 @ 10:12 am
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| » Promissory Note |
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If I die before you
which is all but certain
then in the moment
before you will see me
become someone dead
in a transformation
as quick as a shooting star's
I will cross over into you
and ask you to carry
not only your own memories
but mine too until you
too lie down and erase us
both together into oblivion.
Galway Kinnell
Apr. 10th, 2007 @ 09:54 am
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| » (No Subject) |
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Reflecting on the agonies of love, I was reminded of my first kiss. It was S&C freshman year.
I remember calling my parents the following morning, unable to contain my sobbing.
So much has changed since then, yet the fundamentals have remained the same.
Apr. 9th, 2007 @ 10:13 am
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| » Happy Birthday Adam! |
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Yay! Hope you're having a fantastic day. If we coulda we woulda drunk green beer witchya.
Love, ck
Mar. 17th, 2007 @ 08:18 pm
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| » Stillness |
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I have been given a moment of stillness. It is not normally in my temperment to be still. I have much work to do, and I struggle against being still. It is that German Rosenow blood of my Grandfather's. Always stirring, working. It is a shame that my Irish half doesn't come out stronger.
The city is slowly grinding to a halt. It is our second blizzard this week. In the time we've been living here, I've never quite seen this before. Although my Mother tells me of the blizzard of '82 when she walked to work at The Bank, past city busses angled sideways to the street, their red hulks burried beneath snow drifts.
I normally seek quiet by being busy in a quiet space. It is for that reason that I love working in the woods in fall and winter, cutting firewood. But how do you accept the forced quiet of a place that is always busy? A place that always leaves the eardrums rattling and the nostrils seeking a purer breath?
I made my first official trek by bike in a blizzard.
Steps of all kinds, big and small.
Playing board games with Geoff at 3:30 PM a week ago Tuesday in Albuquerque and at 10:30 getting off the train at the Midtown station to pick up the car. The effortlessness of air travel steals adventure, not to mention the conclusion of a great game. Although she was clearly not "running on all 8," our honorary neice was a joy. Such a beautiful girl she is. And such good parents she has!
I'm still feeling warm and fuzzy with the happiness of seeing everyone! I was worried about seeing Satarnion and Buzzcock. You two have seemed very far away these past few years. 3 years between visits is too long!
We withdrew our offer on the farm on Monday. Despite our 4% raise in our counter-counter-offer, the sellers were not willing to negotiate any further after their counter-offer. The realtor told me that their (read his) reasoning was that they should be able to get full asking price this spring. I'm really bummed about this. But at the same time I am very much in doubt about the realtor's claim. If it's still on the market this fall, we'll try again.
Mar. 1st, 2007 @ 04:21 pm
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| » The Farm |
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On Sunday we made an offer on a 40 acre farm. It's 2 miles east of Clotho, where my folks and aunt and uncle farm. The buildings consist of a 2 bedroom house, a barn, a machine shed, garage, and grainery. There are 15 acres of tillable land. Another half acre could probably be squeezed out of it if the yard were reduced. On Saturday we discovered a beaver lodge hiding among 7 foot tall cat tails and willows.
Feb. 14th, 2007 @ 10:49 am
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| » Commercial Building |
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I've more or less pulled out of the Hart Building project. With the bid from the sprinkler company coming in almost near the value of the building, I was told by my banker that I'd have to likely come up with a 50% down payment. So that would be about $150k that I'd need in assets. Oofda! Running through the numbers, my mortgage payment would alone would be almost $1,700 a month. Then operating costs are close to double that. In order for the building to work for me (with my down payment), I'd need 85% occupancy at the time of sale. I sent a letter to the seller last week outlining the budget problems. I suggested that a non-traditional purchase such as a purchased partnership/phased purchase approach might be an option, and offered to visit with her over the phone or in person if she's interested. I also offered to help her develop a restoration plan, if she chose to keep the building, based on the research I had done in anticipation of a purchase.
These results make me feel pretty sad. The community really needs this building to work. It's the largest commercial structure on Main Street, and without it's space, the commercial district would be in serious decline. The current owner has operated the building 2 years in a row without putting any maintenance into the building, which further elevates the risk to the building itself. It's been on the market for more than 3 years now, and the likely property wheelers and dealers in town won't touch it. The building is a good business opportunity with someone with enough cash. It was making nearly $70k/year, $30k/year net, before the Fire Marshall vacated the residential units. It's just not a fast equity flip-able building that the real estate market has become so used to during the last decade. It's more along the lines of a life-time project.
A and I are moving on to other things (more of that later). I'm wistfully thinking about the Hart Building, and wondering how I can still make it fit into my life sometime in the not too distant future. It's a good business opportunity, that could fit very well into my other dreams.
Tickets have been purchased for soup! I'm very excited to see everyone! NoraNickers! It's been 4 years since we've seen you. I'm really looking forward to giving you a huge hug.
Jan. 28th, 2007 @ 07:08 pm
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| » Winter |
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A winter weekend in Ely, where the only paths north to the arctic circle are taken by canoe, ski, or snow shoe.
Jan. 15th, 2007 @ 10:49 am
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| » Farm Hunting |
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This weekend we were going to meet with Dick Wenker (YES ... say that name aloud to yourself a couple of times), esteemed realtor for Re-Max Lakes, to look at a 61 acre Amish farm (it has it's own small lake (=pot hole)) in Gutches Grove. I called Mr. Wenker the week before. He thanked me for giving him so much advance notice, as he had to send the Yoder family a letter notifying them of our visit (no phone, see!). Mr. Wenker called me late Friday afternoon and read me the following response from Mr. Yoder
Dear Mr. Wenker,
Thank you for your letter. Unfortunately, Saturday is Epiphany. We are unable to conduct business on a holiday. Please re-schedule your showing.
I guess I'd never realized Epiphany was that important. I better get my butt back in church. We found this very cute and amusing, however. In 2 weeks, we'll try again. Hopefully Mr. Yoder will be there as well, so we can query him on the property boundaries and quality of the fields.
I think this falls into the category of day dreaming. But it's a pleasant day dream.
Jan. 10th, 2007 @ 10:45 am
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| » Bid |
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The bid came back for the sprinkler system on the building the day before yesterday. Took me very much by surprise. $130,000; about double what I had been expecting, and is nearly the asking price of the building. So I'm kinda left scratching my head. I think (though I speak with very little knowledge) that this could cause some very serious problems for my financing. Next steps are to get a "second opinion" on the project and finish my business plan.
Jan. 5th, 2007 @ 12:33 pm
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| » Digital Restraint |
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I really love the MoodWatch feature in my Eudora client. That oh so cool slightly melting ice cube that typifies my normal email correspondence to my Chinese counter parts.
I love typing
"Dear Digitizing Staff,
Please go ahead with this order for Sew Unique. Please set up for left chest at 2.4" wide on pique polo. Please send in DST and EXP format. Please send a JPG scan of sewout sample. Fuck you.
My oh so cool slightly melting ice cube turns into two hot New Mexican ristra chiles.
If I were a Chinese digitizer for Mainland Headwear, Ltd., I would much prefer two hot New Mexican ristra chiles to an oh so cool slightly melting Minnesotan Ice Cube. I've never sent those two hot New Mexican ristra chiles because my Chinese counterparts write in extremely formal British style English with bad spelling and punctuation. I worry they would be offended, even though the flavor would be far superior.
But I do dream.
Dec. 13th, 2006 @ 05:49 pm
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| » Going Back |
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Over the weekend, we listend to my grandmother tell stories of living in the same part of the city we live in. She left her parents's farm during The War, in search of a paying job, which were damn hard to find at the tail end of the Depression. Sometimes it's strange thinking of my 85 year old grandmother as a young woman. She frequented a soda jerk close to my office. Did my grandmother, who was engaged to my grandfather, have flings while he was off in the his u-boat sinking Japanese ships? When a little girl, Grandma had a pair of Mary Janes that she could only wear for church. Sometimes she would put them on when nobody was looking. Because she hated the hand-me-down shoes from her cousins.
Listening to a Mingus album Mehlhaff gave me, I was reminded of the album "The Return of the 5,000 Pound Man" by Rahsaan Roland Kirk. When I was little I was fascinated by the mere idea that there could be a 5,000 pound man. I would ask my dad to play the album over and over again, which allowed my imagination to run.
Dec. 13th, 2006 @ 01:59 am
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| » A Day In The Life Of A Dog Patch |
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Anna and I went over to the neighbors to cut firewood in their pasture. The farmstead is what is called a “dog patch.” Rusted equipment from last spring’s planting, with children’s toys scattered in for good measure, lay about the yard. The hay wagon Dad and I returned 4 weeks ago hasn't moved from the spot just off the driveway. A lame cow dog hobbles around the barn yard, followed by at least a half dozen cats and a couple of guinea fowl. A goat and pot bellied pig wander around a ramshackle pen. The 100 year old barn is painted red and white on the front and gold on the back. While Greg, his 5 year old son, and I were standing over by the barn, kicking the powdery dry ground and talking about hunting, a coyote with beautiful dark red markings loped out of the woods and out into the pasture. It followed the dry crick bed, presumably looking for water, right through the herd of cows, and on into my parents' woods. Although I've heard coyotes in Minnesota, this was the first one I've seen here.
Nov. 28th, 2006 @ 08:33 pm
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| » Learnin' to Plow |
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Walt, I thought you in particular - as a former N owner - would get a kick out of these photos. This was my first, and unfortunately only attempt so far, at plowing. We had an old strawberry bed that needed to go fallow. I did this in early July, about 6 weeks into our worst drought in 19 years, so the ground was pretty hard.
( Learnin' to Plow )
Nov. 18th, 2006 @ 03:42 pm
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murva's journal