Monday I arrived at the office prepared to do some work for a contract we have with a delivery in February. This particular job meant I needed a very specific and expensive tool. Said tool was nowhere to be found. I recall last using it in December of last year but it has apparently not been seen since. One person thinks they put it on my desk, one thought they left it on a cart in the lab, another says it should be over there. But, gone, like the wind. To replace it will be a couple thousand dollars and take three months. To say the the stress of this was heavy would be kind. We just finished a year of some pretty big write offs and the idea that I had to report that we lost the tool and it would set us back is not something that would be fun for anyone.
Tuesday I got home after an unseasonably warm Monday where I had let the fire go out. I restarted it like always, some wadded up newspaper crammed under some nice seasoned wood. The fire took off without a miss. Hours later while sitting in the living room I hear a sound much like someone clicking their ring on a glass in their hand, but it was somehow louder and coming from the direction of the fire. Later when I checked the damper on the stove I could see a line of orange glowing on the floor under the stove. Snap! My 34 year old wood stove's cast iron base just cracked!
I emailed the manufacturer about it and they have since replied that it can be welded. But that is a full disassembly of the stove. At least that means I can build the hearth we have been talking about for years and it will also mean that my stash of seasoned wood will surely last the winter.
The next day, Ethan needed the little car so I drove the Pilot. I discovered the front end was making some undesirable noises. Maybe it is the control arm bushing. Problems with those led to Honda extending the warranty to 100k miles.
We worked hard through the week to try to prepare for a design review while also trying to come up with solutions to the missing tool. Just when we thought we had a plan in place to solve it (though still cost money) another setback. This time while machining a part a rubber plug that was protecting some critical bits from machining debris came out and chips went in. While using a magnet to try to clean it, the magnet came apart and lodged itself where it cannot be removed. (I know this is somewhat vague because I can't share all the details, but lets just say this is a REALLY big deal). But the magnetic field around the part made some really cool patterns with the machining chips.
Friday also brought the news of the passing of my aunt. She had been in poor health for a long time (some of it due to her own choices, but none the less).
I spent Saturday dismantling the wood stove before jamming a back road bike ride in as the rain started. The recent heavy snow and subsequent thaw with included rain has left our driveway wrecked. It was so bad that we had a UPS delivery this week and the driver could not make it up and tossed the packed along the side of the driveway.
Today I jacked the car up and removed the front tire to look at the source of the clunking. Looks like it will need a new front axle and not the part that had the warranty extended.
All of this has been consuming my thoughts, making sleep hard. Today while playing guitar at church the question was asked if anyone had a praise for this week. While I didn't respond because I was playing, I did think. What could I say? Somehow all this week had meaning. Some of it is just stupid first world problems, but we all have a desire to have a purpose, to be needed, to succeed in whatever it is we do. The meaning? I have no idea as I type this. I write all of this just to say that in life we deal with all sorts of things. Sometimes it is in abundance, other is times in loss.
I listened to a Radiolab this week where the notion was that there isn't free will and that everything we do, say, think, feel is explained by a biological process. In this there is no source of hope, joy, or meaning. So there is my praise, that since we are more than just a biological mass that aimlessly wanders this world, we have hope, joy, and meaning.
And on a MUCH lighter note, my niece wrote my folks a note warning them about big foot. Enjoy.
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