paloma's journal

due to an ill-advised extremely late bedtime last night, i started off the day very tired. but i managed to make some very beautiful pancakes that gave me some energy.

i made some very nice improvements to the living room raspberry pi media player, which pleased me greatly. watched some videos about the saws in the wood shop at the makerspace, so i will go there tomorrow to complete the process that will give me access to them. and finally, i did a final re-organization of the basement (while wearing a high level of PPE). anything that i left down there is in "cold storage," and anything that i wanted to access more often was brought outside and wiped down to remove any potential lead paint dust before coming into the house. it started raining while i was doing that, which actually wasn't a bad thing since it made it easier to wipe everything down. free water!

now i'm back to being super tired, which is good because it's a reasonable time to get ready for bed. hopefully i can get my sleep schedule back on track now!

i am staying up late again... vacation times. i know it will be annoying to re-adjust for work, but it's fun to stay up late working on projects (in this case, working on the living room raspberry pi media player setup.)

i didn't actually do many of the things i planned to do, but i did go to the hardware store, thrift store, and grocery store. i also sorted through some stuff to get rid of, to make room for tools i need to access often, and gave away a mattress topper to a random person on the internet. (the "free stuff exchange" economy is strong these days.)

tomorrow, it's supposed to rain, but we'll see how much it actually does, or if i can sneak in some outdoor sanding around the weather. (or perhaps, i can just do it in the garage, now that there's space in there from the wall removal.)

a laptop i got for free and installed linux on last week has stopped booting. i was gonna try to fix it but then i decided not to. when chatting about it with a friend they said "the computer will still be broken tomorrow." i think i want to get that engraved on something. the funny thing is that it's probably going to remain true whether i actually attempt to fix it or not.

i guess i'm just hopping between projects, which seems like a good way to spend my week off. i'm also looking forward to andrei returning from wisconsin on thursday; it's fun to fall into rabbit holes, but it's also good to have someone around who keeps you a bit more grounded most of the time.

speaking of which, it's bedtime.

biked over to meet up with a friend and go to the farmers' market this morning. i got some veggies and fish. then went home, ate lunch, and went to an art opening at the ely center, a local art space. the group exhibit was called "body's first architecture" and included lovid, an artist duo based across the sound in long island, who i've been doing some freelance website work for. i said hi to them and it was cool that they came to town for the show.

when i got back home, the lead paint test swabs had arrived, so i used them to test the basement walls. bummer — there was lead paint in almost every area, powdery and chipping away. that has fully put the damper on using that space for any type of workshop (since the landlord will likely not do anything about the lead hazards, and it's not worth it for me as a renter to take on). oh well... i will refocus my efforts on getting badged on the necessary tools at the makerspace and work on my projects there instead. i can also sometimes use the saws at the studio where i work, but it will be good to have options.

i probably don't have enough of a need to justify having my own woodworking space, and the improvements i did so far in the basement were probably for the best anyway... but it's still frustrating. i thought i could at least store some stuff down there, but now i feel paranoid that i already exposed myself to lead from the small amount of cleaning i did so far, and i just want to get all of my stuff out and never go down there again. i guess i could take this all as a lesson. i'm fine to clean up gross messy stuff, but when it comes to neurotoxins, i am not willing to fuck around.

i'm pretty tired out now, so i guess i will just chill out for the evening. perhaps i will make some of that fish for dinner...

the title of this post refers to a literal wall i removed, but it seems like it should be a metaphor for something, too.

i was just planning to sweep some crumbing drywall out of my garage, but i ended up removing all of the drywall because part of it fell off when i was cleaning. (it was kind of rotting since the garage has no door so it was basically outside. who decided to put drywall there in the first place? another mystery of my strange, neglected apartment building.)

then once i had done that, i noticed the framing of the wall was also kind of rotting and was barely even attached to anything (definitely not load bearing). so i just took the whole wall apart and stacked the wood outside and put up a free wood listing on craigslist. (i already have a bunch of random 2x4s so i definitely don't need it.) apparently lots of people want wood because i already got five messages.

that pretty much took up my whole day, and was a lot of work. it was quite humid and warm (though still not bad at all compared to the heat wave) so i got super sweaty and dirty in the process.

it occurred to me that the basement might have lead paint, since the building is from 1900, so i am pausing the basement cleanup until i am able to get a test kit and do some testing down there. if there is a lot of lead paint, i may need to rethink the entire plan. but either way, i could probably use a break from physical labor.

someone is lighting fireworks in the street, i can see it from where i'm sitting.

it's 8:31 pm and i'm sitting near an open window. here is what i hear:

• a weed whacker
• a child crying
• car doors slamming
• music (mostly just the bass and kick drum)
• distant fireworks
• neighbors chatting and laughing
• the whoosh of my window fan
• engine sound of a passing car

it's getting close to the fourth of july and people are definitely starting to have barbecues and such. meanwhile, i am having a quiet evening at home alone (andrei is still in wisconsin).

i had a nice, chill day off. i finally did the thing i needed to do for zine club (sorry for being vague, but i have a policy of keeping the mystery objects a surprise — not that i really expect anyone to read this but me, hah). it was finally a reasonable temperature and humidity out, so i was able to sand my new countertop in the backyard. i think it's looking pretty good. i also coated the bottom, so it will still be a while before it's ready for me to put it into the kitchen.

i also did some more basement fix-up stuff. applied more putty to the sink drain, and finally, i see no dripping at all underneath. i moved the neighbor's dryer vent duct so it actually vents outside, instead of venting into a boarded-up windowsill and getting lint all over the walls. (what went through the mind of whoever put it in that way is so beyond me that i can't think about it for too long or my brain might break.)

unfortunately, i sort of tripped on the stairs that lead from the basement to the backyard, and skinned my shin on the metal frame of the trapdoor. it didn't get scraped enough to bleed, but i might have some nasty bruises. that doorway is a bit awkward, but also i was walking carelessly while holding a container of liquid in each hand, so it was kind of my own fault. (i didn't spill any though!)

on the docket for tonight: another coat of poly on the table, dinner, and perhaps i will seek out some entertainment if i have time before bed...

the weather finally cooled off. i am not sure if i've ever appreciated cool, gray, slightly rainy weather before in my life.

today was my last day of work for over a week. i am enjoying my new job, but i am also excited to have a solid chunk of days to work on my own stuff. this is the first time in quite a while where i'm off work and don't need to be searching for my next job or freelance gig!

after work, i went to the gym. my abdominal strain seems to be improving, but it's not back to normal yet, so what i can do is still somewhat limited, but i definitely succeeded in tiring myself out. since i got home afterwards, i basically have had no energy. it's only 10pm right now but i might just go to bed anyway. it's not like i'm going to be able to do much else.

so, last night i did indeed do 1 of the 2 urgent things i needed to do. i'm settling in for the evening now, so i will hopefully finish the other one tonight (it's making something for zine club!)

according to the weather report, today is supposed to be the last super hot day of this heat wave. i am looking forward to more reasonable temperatures and being able to work outside again tomorrow.

after work today, i went to the yoga studio and worked the front desk, but i didn't participate in the class because i still have pain from my strain at the gym yesterday.

then i came back home and did a tiny bit more work on the basement cleaning project. it's slowly becoming a slightly less horribly disgusting situation down there. there is still a lot to do to make it a usable space, but i'm pretty sure that i've put a stop to all the active water damage, so that seems like it will help a lot.

another scorching hot day, with a high temperature of 99 degrees fahrenheit, mostly spent inside. i did some more tutorials in rhino, the 3D modeling program, and played around with making some fun shapes. i really like the program; compared to the other 3D programs i have used (blender and sketchup), i find it so much easier, more precise, and oddly satisfying. i had to admit that, after playing with it for a while, doing more would have been mostly for fun since i had already quickly picked up the basics. but i am thinking of using it for some home woodworking projects.

i also played with the dog more. he was much better at not peeing on the floor today, seemingly because he was mostly crated while indoors, but brought outside to the yard often. he mostly napped while i was organizing paint buckets and it was very cute to watch him being comfy and lazy. i also remembered to take a photo of him today. (i try not to use my phone much while at work so i forgot yesterday.)

after work, i went to the gym. i did some lat pull downs, but then when i went to do an upside-down sit-up i strained something in my abdominals and had to stop completely and recover. after that i just went on the treadmill and worked up my pace extremely gradually to make sure i didn't trigger it again. a bit disappointing since i didn't really get much exercise. i have yoga tomorrow so i hope my weird strain goes away by then.

now i'm back home, and i am definitely going to do the things i have been supposed to do for a while but didn't because i was obsessed with my basement project. (right? yes. definitely...)

so, it turns out that the artist couple i work for did indeed get a puppy over the weekend. his name is thor and he doesn't yet know that peeing on the floor is not considered polite, but he is very adorable. i enjoyed taking him out for walks and playing with him.

the heat wave continues to hang heavily over the new haven area. i have mostly been working inside so thankfully it hasn't been a huge problem, but even at night it's hot enough that many fans are needed.

i spent some more time this evening working on the basement, although i probably should have prioritized other things. it is hard to convey how truly filthy it is down there. but the shop vac seems to be able to handle most of it fairly well. i also took a closer look at a leaking drainpipe which i will try to seal with putty.

i am actually ready for bed at a decent hour this time.

it's past 11pm, and still well over 80 degrees fahrenheit outside. the fabled heat wave is upon us!

i headed back home earlier today, and began the process of cleaning out part of my basement — enough to make a space down there to store the newly unloaded tools. though it is quite dirty down there, at least it's a reasonable temperature, being mostly underground.

i got sucked into working on getting various devices in my house to talk to each other. now, i can watch movies from my computer on the kodi (raspberry pi media player). of course, by the time i got it set up, it was too late to watch anything.

i made a tofu and rice "salad" with raw carrots and cabbage to eat for lunch at work this week. i think it will be a good thing to eat cold, since the weather seems to call for that.

now i must go to bed, since i have work tomorrow!

since my parents are moving out of their house to travel for a while, i am taking a bunch of saws and other power tools from their barn and bringing them to my house to set up a little workshop of my own. so mostly today i sorted through some of that stuff and loaded up my car. i also hung out with my family, went for a walk down to the bridge with my mom, and cooked dinner with my dad. then my younger sibling showed up and now we are all watching a cheesy bollywood movie.

andrei headed out this morning to wisconsin to visit their family for a week. i got a bunch of stuff done at home while i waited for the car shop to look at my car.

they called and told me that my front control arms were worn out, and needed to be replaced, along with the sway bar links. it was a hefty chunk of change, but my car seems to be in otherwise decent condition, so i went ahead with it. i felt stressed out at the unexpected expense, but i guess i sort of knew i was going to have to do something to the car and was delaying taking it in until now.

thankfully, the shop was able to finish the repairs this afternoon so i could still leave for my trip to visit my family in upstate new york. on the drive up, i saw some breathtaking views, which were particularly impressive because i have lived in the mountains for a lot of my life and am somewhat desensitized to their aesthetic value. but i was driving west up into them right at golden hour, and there was mist involved, so. fill in the blanks.

there was also this amazing cloud situation with a bunch of different layers and textures of clouds, all lit through from behind by the sun, with lots of detail and contrast. it was like one of those hyper realistic HDR photos of the sky or an exaggerated sky in a video game. as if that wasn't enough, there was a large sundog about 20 degrees to the left of the setting sun. as the sun turned more orange, the sundog became this shard of flame hovering in the air. i was like, holy shit. but i was also driving, so i couldn't really take a photo of any of it. though possibly it would have been quite difficult to capture anyway.

when i saw that, i decided that i was going to let that moment be the deciding factor of the mood of my day, rather than the car situation.

i hung out with my family, ate some dinner, gave my mom and sibling the birthday cards i made them. now it's dark and hot and misty and i can hear the stream through the open window and i am going to sleep.

i succeeded in my plan from yesterday of getting extra sleep and i had much more energy today. i also didn't have to leave for work as early as usual so i had time to put another coat on the tabletop. it just needs to cure for a while, and then i can sand it and coat the bottom...

it was really hot out, but luckily i was working most of the day inside. one of the things i worked on was learning rhinoceros, the 3d modeling / CAD app. it actually ended up being pretty intuitive and pleasant to draw and model in, and it seems like a very powerful app, so i was excited to learn something that seems like it will be useful in the future.

i dropped my car off at the shop on the way home so they can look at it tomorrow. it was making that odd noise on and off; i don't think it's anything serious but i wanted to do my due diligence before driving to visit my family.

my bike lock anchor arrived, so i installed it by bolting it to the cinder block wall in our garage. we are quite pleased to have one less bike taking up space in our hallway.

then i took a semi-nap in the hammock.

it's finally cooling off a little, and it looks like it might thunderstorm. looking forward to a chill evening, maybe we will watch a movie...

this morning i woke up and my body told me that i didn't get enough sleep, so tried to take it easy today. after work, i skipped my yoga shift/class (after confirming that the other volunteer would be there.)

the people i work for might be getting a puppy soon. i hope they do so i can vicariously enjoy it.

i made a little workstation in my basement and started coating the tabletop with polyurethane. i also planted a little shrub in the backyard — it's called blackhaw viburnum. i made a little rock garden around it to hopefully make it apparent that no one should mow or weed wack it down.

also, i saw the skunk moseying around outside. it was very cute.

hope i can get some extra sleep tonight!

today was rather wet and rainy. at work, i mostly worked on the computer. i figured out how to do some neat scripting in photoshop for batch processing files that will save a bunch of time. then we cleaned up the wood shop and david helped me cut down my giant sheet of baltic birch plywood for the kitchen sideboard. it came out looking very nice. on my way home, i picked up some wood finish and screws. but i will probably have to wait until it's not raining to coat the wood outside since the finish is smelly.

when i got home, we had a meeting with our friend tim about the future plans for polyphase portal. then i called my mom to wish her a happy birthday.

i have a lot of ideas right now about setting up a small wood shop in my basement. maybe too many ideas for my own good, as there are other things going on that i also need to attend to. between working during the week and traveling on the weekends, it can be difficult to balance everything. i'm going to visit my family this weekend, but after that i want to stay put for a while.

it's fun to have projects going on, but it's also important to give myself a chance to rest and go into parasympathetic mode. it will be a busy week, but i can still find little moments to chill out and remind my brain that i don't need to keep going nonstop.