Iron Modeler

Catching up

Howdy...

A lot has happened since we last visited in October.

Work picked up about the time I made my last post, and it was rather hectic through late March/early April.  It has once again tapered off, but no work means no pay, so I'm working to suss out some work.

The holidays came and went.  It is always a favorite time of year for me, but lately I get mired in a funk of childhood nostalgia during the winter holidays. 

Then came New Year's eve.  My wife and I had gone grocery shopping, and when we got home we noticed that our older Feline Justice Unit was having some difficulty.  He had his surgery in August, and since then he had lost some weight.  He saw his cardiologist, too, and got a clean bill of health.  But in those last months of 2018, he started to slow down a bit.  He was 16 years old, and we reasoned that he was starting to show his age.  He started having a runny nose, too, but it would come and go, so we didn't think anything of it.

But when we got home, he was acting as if he was backed up--his back was arched and he looked like he was trying to push a load out.  We called is regular vet, but they had just closed the office for New Years.  His cardiologist was co-located at an Emergency Veterinarian clinic, so we took him there.  They took some x-rays, did some tests, and thought he had a touch of pancreatitis.  They prescribed some meds and a bland diet, and sent him home.  My wife and I decided to see how he did over the next day or so, and if he didn't improve, we'd take him to his regular vet.

Well, he didn't improve.  We called his vet on Wednesday, and they agreed to see him on Thursday.  My wife got him in the carrier and took him.  When she got there, the vet had a listen to his chest and told my wife she should probably take him to the cardiologist.  She did, and over the course of several phone calls, she left him overnight to see if one of the things the cardiologist wanted to try would work.  Basically, they gave him diuretics and put him on oxygen.  The plan was to keep him on oxygen until early in the morning, then try to wean him off.  

We got a call that night, and the tech said he was doing well.  The call at 6 AM the next morning wasn't as rosy--when they tried to wean him off, his sat numbers took a nose dive.  The cardiologist called around 9 AM, and said basically that Junior's mighty ticker was failing.  We made the decision that our fierce, ferocious, and mighty Tennessee Walking Tiger would be allowed to go be the tiger he imagined he was, and the end came at around 3:45PM on Friday, 5 January.

As you might imagine, he left a big void in out hearts.  He may have been our cat, but he was my wife's best buddy, editorial assistant, and near-constant companion.  Smokey, our Little Mountain Guy, was out of sorts from the time Junior left to go to the vet on Thursday, and to tell the truth, he's still in a bit of a funk over the loss of his play buddy.

Fast forward a few weeks.  I had a minor medical adventure of my own in late January, and after I came home I laid down on the couch to sleep.  An hour or so later, my wife walks in and comes around to the front of our couch.  Peeking out from her sweater was the cutest little tabby cat face.  "Meet Gilda", she said.  I knew my wife had already pre-applied to several shelters, and I knew that sooner or later we would have another feline member of the household.  When my wife went to see what the shelter had to offer, she first noticed this one black kitty who was meowing and climbing all over everything.  But she also noticed a little tabby cat sitting on a piece of play equipment, and when she went over to see, this little kitty climbed right into my wife's lap.  Every time she tried to put the kitty down, it would climb right back into her lap.  "You may as well get the paperwork ready, I believe I've been adopted..."

Gilda had been abandoned on the step of the animal shelter in the next county up from us on a frigid night with her brother, and her brother got adopted the day before my wife went to the shelter.  My wife was happy that not only was she adopting Gilda, she wasn't breaking up any siblings to do so.

Once in the house, Gilda quickly asserted her will.  She will prance through the house, head erect, tail straight up in the air, it's tip waving like a flag.  I call her "Little Miss Gilda, Large and In Charge.  Even Smokey has taken somewhat of a shine to her--they'll spend every evening chasing each other around the house.  They'll scrap, sure, but they'll later curl up next to each other and snooze...

Junior's Christmas portrait, 2018.  He was certainly a rakishly handsome tiger, and we miss him.

 

Smokey's Christmas portrait.  This was the best of about ten photos, he wouldn't sit still for us.  To be fair, neither of the boys actually liked wearing a collar, even if it did feature a chic bow tie.

 

Meet Gilda.  She's our little princess.

She's a beautiful little girl!

Gilda and Smokey, in a calm moment.

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We're about 23 days away from the Second Annual South Carolina Scale Model Mega Show, coming up on 22 June at the Bluff Road Armory in Columbia, SC.  It's shaping up to be a great show--if you're in the area, stop by and check it out!

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The AMPS Central South Carolina Wildcats Chapter is in the middle of a rather large project.  It has been interesting so far, between the research and the modeling.  To be sure, I have had quite the education on U.S. Army helicopter units in Vietnam, circa 1970!  Our client wants to keep it under wraps, so I can only post a teaser or two for now...

 

A quartet of 1/72 scale UH-1H Hueys, from the 1971-vintage Hasegawa kit.  Several club members did the actual construction, I'm merely applying paint and putting the decals on them.  One of these is mine, I used it as a pathfinder so I could tell the others what needed to be done.  Three will be on the project--two as slicks, one as a dustoff.

 

An Italeri 1/72 OH-6A, also built by one of the guys.  I merely squirted paint...we had bespoke decals made for the project, including the helicopters.

 

The last piece of the airborne puzzle:  An Italeri 1/72 scale CH-47D, being backdated to a "Super C" Chinook and modified so it can be posed in flight with a sling load of howitzer ammunition.  Early days here, but you get the idea...

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So, now you're up to date.  Perhaps the next one will not be such a bummer...

Thanks for reading.  Be good to one another, and I bid you Peace.

Temporarily Retired

As I've indicated, my last day of employment came and went early in March.  I was asked to make a trip to the company's new digs to deliver some IT equipment, and I can tell you that the new place is a Taj Mahal compared to the shoebox we had been working out of for five and a half years.  And, true to the end, my boss kept trying to get me to move.  Sorry, boss.  My wife and family are situated, I'm staying put.  Thanks for asking.

I'm starting to get some things moving on the job front.  Until then, I'm going to pick up a few shifts at the local hobby shop.  I've always enjoyed my times working at hobby shops, because, well, I was working in a hobby shop!  Nobody will get rich by doing so, but I enjoy meeting the customers and helping them either find a hobby or enjoy the one they already pursue.

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After taking a week of doing next to nothing--you know, to clear my mind--you would think I could get back to doing some things that I had missed due to the work schedule.  However, that would be flawed logic, because the first weekend in April saw the 2016 AMPS International Convention roll into Sumter, SC.  How was the show?  I can only comment for myself--it may not have been the biggest, but it was the best run.  I may be a bit biased, though, since I was a member of the host Chapter.  We had 125 entrants who put 399 models on the tables.  Another 179 people paid for a General Admission walk-in.  43 vendors were spread over some 60 tables--including at least four club tables with display models on them, which pushed the total number of models in the building to close to 500.  Personally, my little M20 took an Intermediate Gold, which was nice--and it bumped me up to an Advanced Modeler.  There were a few minor glitches, but they all got worked out or are being revisited for the next hosts.  Next year's show will be in Danbury, CT, so make you plans now...

So, with AMPS over, I can rest, right?  Wrong.  Remember, this year puts both the AMPS and IPMS/USA National shows in the Midlands of South Carolina.  No rest for the weary, wicked, twisted, or other.  I'm coordinating the seminars, and I have had a great group of speakers volunteer.  I've put together a schedule which should work very well.  Now, I just have to get everyone on the same page with me--which at times can be akin to herding cats.  But all will go well in the end--I can sense it...

Being the seminar coordinator, I decided that I'd present two of my own.  One will cover the convention theme of "Every Model Tells a Story", the other was going to cover piston-powered airliners.  But at some point I was asked if anyone was doing a seminar on model building basics.  At the time, I was struggling to find material to fill out an hours' worth of propliners, so I switched tracks and started to put together a Back to Basics seminar.  In order to do better illustrate the Back to Basics seminar, that means one thing:  I needed to build a model.  I had recently purchased some SIDNA from a club member, one of which was the Hasegawa 1/72 Beaufighter Mk.21.  It is a neat little kit, and even with the advent of the new Airfix TF.X, it still is a worthy kit.  I grabbed it off of the stack, and as of about an hour ago it was basically sitting in completed sub-assemblies.  I'd like to have this one done quickly--I am also using is as my "Get your mojo back" model, so the sooner I can call it done, the sooner I can move on to other kits.

This will sound strange--between my last days at work and the start of the AMPS convention, I actually started another kit, too--an Aeroclub 1/48 scale Gloster Gamecock, which was also bought as SIDNA from a friend at a swap meet.  It has been a while since I tackled a vac-form kit, but after knocking some rust off I have found the project to be rather enjoyable.  I still have other kits to finish--most of which are at the paint shop phase--but something told me to start the Gamecock.  I don't know, maybe I started the Gamecock so the dogs in my head would stop barking, but I'm making fairly good progress and am actually trying a few new techniques that I've read about.  Now that this one is well under way, I need to finally go looking for an Aeroclub Gauntlet for my 74 Squadron collection.

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My wife and I did get a chance to take a few day trips--one of them was to see our friends at  the Augusta HobbyTown USA.  We deliberately make a note of Master's weekend and stay away, but the weekend after the golfers leave is usually pretty tranquil.  In the theme seminar I'm presenting, part of it covers a story of a model of an AV-8B.  Long story--I'll write a post about it after the convention--but the gist is that I decided to obtain the Kittyhawk Models 1/48 F-35B as a companion piece.  Give me a while, and I might actually get it built.  Kitthawk's kits carry a reputation online, but I've witnessed firsthand that they are not impossible to build.  My wife has finished both their T-45 Goshawk and the TF-9J Twogar, and they both are excellent models.  

Our other day trip was to the the big city of Blue Ridge, Georgia, home of Free Time Hobbies.  I've bought from them online a time or two, and their selection they show online called to us to go for a visit.  We left the house at about 9:30 AM and got home around 8:30PM.  It isn't really a long ride, but the drive takes you through a lot of rural areas.  The store is quite nice, and we managed to find a few things we needed.  It isn't a trip we'll take every month, or even every six months, but it was a trip we were glad we took.

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We had planned to leave the house earlier on our trip to Blue Ridge, but when my wife was summoned awake by the Mighty Tiger (who had a Tiger Food Low Level Light come on), she noticed our little cat wouldn't leave the back window, and she kept hearing a cat crying.  She assumed it was the little guy, but when she looked outside, she saw another cat on the porch.  We had seen this guy a few times before--a youngish cat, gray in color--when he would camp out on the porch.  This time, though, something wasn't right.  The cat was sitting still with his head into the corner, not moving much, and every now and then would shudder, as if he was having a seizure.  It had been a cold night, but we don't know if that factored into what was going on.  After a while, not knowing what was happening, my wife called Animal Control.  Since it was early, the Sheriff's Office responded.  The deputy kept checking on the cat every now and then, and it was evident that the little kitty wasn't doing well.  By the time the Animal Control officer arrived, the cat was more or less motionless.  It did wiggle when she tried to pick it up, so she gave it a sedative before she loaded it into a carrier and took him away.  We don't know what happened after she took the kitty away, but we're fairly positive it is playing a golden harp.

What nobody could figure out was what happened.  It seemed to be paralyzed on one side, as if it had suffered a stroke.  We don't know if it had been poisoned, we don't know if it met up with a snake and been bitten, we don't know if some cruel person or persons did something to it.  All we know is that our little guy sat inside the whole time, looking after the injured cat.  And, when our little guy would start crying, his big brother would walk over and lick him on the head.  So much for being ferocious beasts--our two feline gentlemen proved that they do love each other.

This story illustrates why both of our feline justice units live indoors--in our area, predators lurk in the woods.  It doesn't take long to become a snack for a Red-Tailed Hawk, an eagle, or a fox (or even a stray feral dog or another cat),  or meet up with a rattlesnake.  No, they do just fine in the house--the little one gets into enough mischief inside, I can scarcely imagine what he'd do in the great out of doors.

That's all there is for now.  Thanks for reading--I'll post some Gamecock photos, and other photos, as things move along the line towards completion.  Really.  I will...

Be good to one another, and, as always, I bid you Peace.

 

It's Dude Time at the hacienda...

Mama's away on her annual pilgrimage to Alaska, so that leaves just me and the boys (Smokey and Junior) to mind the store.  Since it has been so hot of late, I've spent most of my time at home inside, and they are both rather needy.  In fact, right now Smokey's warming up his vocal chords and is ready to try out for Feline Idol...he's such an attention hog!

And while Smokey's making enough noise for three cats, Junior is sleeping on the couch in the other room.  Every now and then, he'll shoot a look towards his little brother as if to say, "Would you put a lid on it already?"

In other news, living out in the country has pluses and minuses.  One of the minuses was emphasized this morning--we live on a gravel road.  There's a bit of a downgrade before you get to our driveway, which has a grade of its own.  Where the two meet is usually in good shape, but lately the culvert has been blocked with pine straw and dirt.  Every time they plow the road, more dirt gets pushed into the ditch on the side of the road, and when it rains--we've had some torrential storms of late--more of this dirt gets washed into the culvert.  Well, now it is totally blocked and the water (which has had to find a way downhill and seeks the path of least resistance) has eroded a fairly large trench at the foot of the driveway.  And, as luck would have it, guess who got his truck stuck this morning?  You got it.  About a half-hour of blue language followed, but I managed to get un-stuck after a few tries at different remedies.  This afternoon, when I got home, though, I had to do something.  There was a wind fallen tree on the side of the road, so I put that in the truck and hauled it to the house.  Into the ditch it went, and then, in this ungodly heat, I shoveled dirt on top.  So, I have a temporary fix--but Newberry County, you need to send out a crew to plow the road *and* clean out my culvert which you have succeeded in blocking on more than one occasion...

With me being sole caregiver to both Feline Units, nothing has changed on the model bench.  I wish I could eke out some time, but the older one misses mom (he thinks he's a tough guy, but he is most certainly a mama's cat) and the little one is simply an attention hog...can't leave him for more than a minute before he starts howling like he's lost his best friend.

The other critters I look after are the hummingbirds--and we have quite a few of them out here.  We started out with one feeder that we'd fill every other day or so, but over the years we've gone to two feeders that get filled daily--and sometimes twice daily.  So, as soon as I get home I feed the Feline Units, put them into a bedroom temporarily, feed the hummingbirds, then let the Felines roam the house while I make supper.  They hang out in the living room while I eat, then the little guy will start his vocal gymnastics.  Out comes the laser pointer.  Want to have fun with a cat?  Get a laser pointer and watch them chase the dot (be careful, of course, to not point it in their eyes).  Even the older cat gets in on the fun from time to time, and it settles both of them down a bit...

Once I get on the computer, though, all bets are off--sometimes the little guy will calm down and snooze on the futon.  Other times, like tonight, he decides he wants to wail and see if ol' Dad will play with him.  He spent the better part of the time it took to type this post cuddled in my lap, purring away.  Then he got interested in the computer--the keyboard first, then the mouse.  After a while, he decided that all that purring was making him hungry, so he took a meal break...

Once again, both of them are snoozing.  Peace and quiet--I should enjoy it while it lasts...

Tomorrow is another (hot) day...and next week sees us with another airplane with a lot to do in a short time.  Those are the makings of some fun, there...

Thanks for reading.  Be good to one another, and I bid you Peace... 

 

"It's hot enough to boil a monkey's bum in here, your Majesty..."

I don't think I need to tell you that in certain parts of the United States, it has been hot.  Really hot.  Excessively hot.  The heat wave has covered a large part of the Midwest and Northeast, as well as those areas where you'd expect it to be hot--like South Carolina.  I was on the phone with someone is South Florida who said they were hot down there, until I told them that our temperature last Wednesday was 105--with the heat index it was 116.  I know.  I worked in it all day.  And yes, we beat South Florida...

The past few years have seen heat waves the likes of which haven't been experienced for decades.  Now, I'm not a gloom-and-doomer, but I can tell you that I've never, in my 30+ years of living in the South, experienced such hot summers.  Today, to beat the heat, I decided to burn a vacation day--we're slow at work, and I couldn't see another 8 hours doing busy work in the hangar.  I spent the day catching up on some well-deserved sleep and spending time with my wife and our two boys, Junior and Smokey.

Speaking of the Feline Units, they're getting along well.  A few swats at each other with what appears to be closed paws (no claws deployed, thank goodness), and few hisses, but nothing to write home about otherwise.  Smokey's still taking antibiotics as a prophylactic after his surgery, but we did move his dry food bowl into the kitchen, across from the Mighty Tiger's cafeteria.  Now, Junior has been nicking food from Smokey--I caught him nose-down in Smokey's wet food bowl the other morning, and he keeps noshing at Smokey's dry food bowl.  Maybe it is fortunate, then, that Smokey doesn't seem to enjoy wet foot (aka "Tigr Fud"), so maybe we can dispense with the extra bowl for him.  Junior, though, is a fiend for Fancy Feast, and I don't see how we can take him off it cold turkey--he'd have to go to a Betty Ford clinic for cats, he's so hooked.  The only remaining issue is going to be breaking Smokey of his late-night howling sessions.  He'll stand in the hallway and howl if he feels he's not being paid enough attention, or thinks he needs food.  Junior did the same thing at that age, and it seems to be one of those things you just have to be patient with--Junior saw many a night in the spare bathroom with his boxes and bowls and the door shut before he finally stopped.  I'm hoping that Smokey doesn't have to go that route, but I will go that way if I have to...

And, I guess since Junior eats Smokey's food, Smokey only finds it fair to use Junior's litter boxes (another separate facility that will be combined shortly, by the way)...

On the model front, I made some limited progress on the Monte Carlo.  One bite at a time, I keep telling myself...

Speaking of NASCAR, my wife surprised me with Power Slide's new decal sheet for the AMT 1/25 scale 2010 Impala that will allow me to add to my Tony Stewart collection.  The sheet looks pretty good on the paper--the artwork is superb, and the printing is crisp.  Everything looks like it is on the sheet, ready to be applied to the model.  All you need to do is either add one of the resin nose clips floating around on cyberspace or make your own--2011 saw the distinct notched bumper/splitter combined and cleaned up a bit.  For a snap fit kit, AMT seems to have hit the mark--the newer kits give you both the wing and spoiler--and do as I did, and get the "Plain" version marketed for use with aftermarket decals.  You'll save a few bucks if you do.  I'll give you a better rundown on both kit and decal sheet as soon as I have time to review them more in depth.  This project may be one of the first I do after I tie up my loose ends on the bench.

In the next couple of installments, I want to look back at my modeling "career" and talk about some of the people I've met along the way who've given me guidance, instruction, and inspiration.  I'd like to communicate with those who are still alive and kicking before I do, so be patient.  I think most of them would have no problems being "showcased" if you will, but since they are my friends I'd like to get their blessings before I write about them.  Stay tuned...

Have a safe weekend.  Stay cool!

Thanks for reading.  Be good to one another, and, as always, I bid you Peace.

 

Feline update

This week saw Smokey visit the vet for his second round of shots, some tests, and his de-milling.  All went well--except that one of Smokey's Family Jewels hasn't descended, so he's still half-armed.  The vet said he'd look at things in a month and decide what to do.  All other tests came back negative--no FIV, no Feline Leukemia (FeLeuk).  He also swabbed a sample from his right eye to have cultured, so we'll see what happens there.  Meanwhile, we have a prescription to treat whatever's irritating the eye.

Since all indicators pointed to Smokey being a healthy cat, my wife decided to let Smokey out of the Master suite and into the rest of the house.  I wasn't home, but I understand things were a bit tentative.  Smokey, being a young cat, wants to play.  Junior, who has been King of the House for eight years, isn't thrilled with the new addition.  There have been a few moments between the two, but for the most part, they've done well.

_{Smokey, the little ginger-colored cat on the scratching post, gets the eye from Junior...}

_{Smokey returns the favor.}

_{Smokey, all sacked out on the scratching post.  The destruction was more than likely Junior's handiwork--and you can see just how well Smokey heeds warnings like that...}

There have been a few moments--my wife had to use the spray bottle on Smokey earlier today--he's treating everything as his--including Junior's sandboxes and food bowls.  Now, just look at Junior--the last thing he needs is another food bowl, yet he's eyeballing Smokey's.  I guess Junior feels that what's good for one is good for all.  We're trying to keep Junior from Smokey's food bowls and Smokey from Junior's kitter boxes.  It seems to have calmed Junior down a bit.

With all the territorial posturing, no fur has flown.  Junior's hissed and growled, Smokey's howled a bit, but they haven't fought.  Let's hope it stays that way...

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I'll be judging tomorrow at the AMPS/Central South Carolina Chapter's Inaugural Contest.  I'll post pictures as I'm able.  We're hoping we get a decent showing--we're co-hosting the show with the Midlands Chapter of the South Carolina Modeler's Association.  I'm looking forward to a fun day.

The busy week has taken its toll on my sleep, so that's all I have for you right now.  Thanks for reading.  Be good to one another, and I bid you Peace.

What a week...

The road to hell was paved with good intentions, or so I'm told.  Well, the fact that I haven't accomplished much at the workbench this week stems from the fact that Smokey, our own Feline Unit Number Two, is a whirling dynamo of energy who also has a case of cabin fever--and, being a cat, has that innate curiosity gene.  We let him graduate from just the Master Bathroom to the Master Suite, and that's where he's spent the last week.  We're careful to split our attention between both Feline Units, as Junior the Mighty Tiger would not be amused should we not pay him the attention ascribed to his mightiness.  I've been spending the nights with Smokey, and my wife has been keeping Junior company. 

Well, there's another thing--Smokey's a kitten for all intents and purposes, and he's used to being his own cat and roaming free at night.  Operative words in the phrase--roaming at night.  Smokey's got this soft little voice when he wants to be sweet, but when he wants either attention or food, that soft little mew becomes a yowl.  A rather loud yowl.  And, since he and Alicia Bridges share a passion for the night life, he has limited my sleep to maybe four hours a night.  And, when I get aggravated about it I remember that Junior did the same thing when he was Smokey's age.  Even so, it has been a little tense...

Another thing that I am realizing is that Smokey is as Junior was when we were first adopted by Junior--Smokey's a scrawny little thing, still in possession of his, er, equipment.  Junior was a little bigger than Smokey is now, but today Junior is weighing in at nearly 15 pounds--that's right, he's our own pot-bellied cat.  It has become evident over the past few days just how pot-bellied the June-Bug is--I can pick Smokey up one-handed (if he doesn't try to squirm away, which he is quite adept at doing), but Junior is a heft to pick up.  Of course, Junior has been dis-armed, and that tends to add some weight to a cat.  We're hoping that Smokey will keep Junior moving, which will get his weight down.

Speaking of disarmament, Smokey is scheduled to go back to the Tiger Doctor on Tuesday for his own de-milling.  He's also going to get his FIV and FeLeuk tests, as well as have his runny eye re-examined.  We're hopeful that all goes well, the tests are negative, and we can finally get Junior and Smokey together at a face-to-face summit.  We're waiting, because A:  His weight notwithstanding, Junior is a healthy cat, and we want to keep it that way; 2: We'll need to know about FIV and FeLeuk anyway on the off-chance that Smokey and Junior don't get along, as we'll need to find Smokey a good home; and C:  I don't need Smokey to start spraying to mark his stuff from Junior's.  As I said, we're hopeful all goes well--early indications seem to indicate that, while they may scuffle at first, the two will get along.  All we need now is a clean bill of health on the little guy.

Meanwhile, he stays in the Master Suite.

And, just as I think we might have a slow period at work, as soon as the last airplane left, a new one rolled in for work.  It is in for an inspection and we have a short turn-around time, so we worked a bit today (Saturday).  I'm hoping all goes well with the inspection so we can deliver when promised, since I won't have time next weekend--the local AMPS Chapter is hosting their Inaugural Contest, and I have to be there...

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I did manage to get some decal work done on the 1995 Silver Select Monte Carlo.

Those of you with sharp eyes can see the inside represents a round-side car while the exterior is slab-sided.  Apparently, Monogram did what they tended to do when it came to race cars in the mid- to late-1990's and based the model on a show or rollout car.  The car as actually raced had slab sides.  A few strips of Evergreen and some Polyester Glazing Putty later, and Bob's your uncle.  You probably also caught the decal film, and that's a tough thing to deal with on silver surfaces.  I plan on giving the whole thing a coat or two of Future, so that ought to blend everything together nicely.  I started this with a set of Mooseworks Decals that I bought when I bought the kit in 1995, but they got brittle and shattered when I soaked them, even after a few coats of liquid decal film.  My wife found a set of RaceScale decals-what a sweetie she is!  They worked quite nicely--they even had the contingencies, so I didn't need to use the discolored kit decals!

I have some touch up work to do, both to the silver and the Chevy Engine Red interior areas.  The chassis and roll cage have their base coat of Engine Red, too.  I have to paint the padding, engine, and the little detail painting, them assemble the lot.  I'm hoping to get time and motivation back on my side soon.

In the meantime, be good to one another, and I bid you Peace.

A New Addition

Today sees the addition of another family member.  No, we don't have children.  Up until this morning, our only dependant was an 8-year old, 15-pound (give or take a pound or two) Mackerel Tabby cat, known far and wide as Junior the Fierce Ferocious and Mighty Tennessee Walking Tiger, Master of His Domain and All He Surveys.  Well, this morning he got a little brother.  The new guy's name is officially Smokey, and he's (by all appearances) an Orange Tabby with maybe a bit of an Albino tendency.  He's almost as affectionate as Junior--maybe more so--and he's right now sacked out in our Master bathroom while he acclimates to the surroundings--and the other feline critter.

Smokey came to be with us the way many animals find humans to care for them.  He showed up on our back doorstep a few months ago.  My wife feels that all of God's critters need to be fed, so she gave him some food and water.  He returned for a few days, then vanished.  We see that from time to time--out in the woods, various fates befall small animals.  Some get adopted, some get found and reunited with their families, some become victims of the various predatory creatures that also inhabit the woods.  While we always hope for the best, we always have to expect the worst, too.  So, when he showed up again a couple of weeks ago, she started to feed him again.  By his behaviour, it was apparent that he was used to being around people.  He was quite affectionate, and he had a certain degree of separation anxiety whenever my wife tried to come back inside.  At that time, he gained the nickname "Transient Bonus Cat".

As the days passed, it became apparent that this little kitty had no human staff members to cater to his every whim (and you non-cat people will never understand--dogs have masters, cats have staff--it is just the way it is) and we began talking about letting him adpot us--silly, I know, since the "adoption" was a fait accompli as far as the cat was concerned.  He'd show up at the same time every day, and he knew he'd get fed and watered, and perhaps could spend a few minutes with either me or my wife while we patted his back or scratched his ears.  We talked about the fact that the Master of the House was El Hombre Macho Solo and had run of the place for eight years, but we felt that he'd adjust.

So, this morning the new guy had a ride in the car and got to meet out vet--a gruff man who certainly loves his critters.  With that, the cat formerly known as Transient Bonus Cat got a clean bill of health, his shots, some instructions to care for a scratched eye he got in a fight with another critter, and an appointment a month from now for his second round of feline leukemia vaccines and his de-milling (he's got quite a set on him--almost as large as Junior's were before we had him disarmed).  In the meantime, we're going to try and integrate the two critters and give them both run of the house.  I believe that Junior's green eyes will go away after a while.  They may keep their distance from each other, but sooner or later I'd like to think they'll become buddies (and in the cat-to-English translation that equates to "partners in crime")... 

So, when the production line at the workbench slows down even more than it has, you'll know why.

Thanks for reading.  Have a safe and Happy Independence Day this coming Monday.  Be good to one another, and I bid you Peace.

Of cats and Mighty Tigers

While I have no problem with dogs, I am basically a cat person.  My parents had a cat when I was in college, and she was a sweet kitty who, when she needed you, would come and find you.  She tended to be a daddy's girl--whenever my father was home, she'd usually gravitate towards him for food, a brushing, or just to snuggle up in his lap after supper.  Like most cats, she adopted us (as any cat person knows, you don't adopt a cat--you are the one being adopted) via one of my mother's students, who had been house-sitting for friends when their cat dropped a litter.  We think Samantha was runt of the litter, as she was on the small-ish side of kittens her age, she had ear nicks, and she wasn't very vocal.  Every now and then she'd let out a meow, I guess just to let us know she was there.  Other than that, she was a quiet cat, even when her 16-year old body began to fail her.  I look back on our time together and can only smile, since she was such a dear member of the family.  Funny how pets do that...

Our current furry denizen of the domain, though, is about as different as day is to night--when he first adopted us, we called him the puppy cat, since he followed one of us wherever we went in the house.  He was one of the countless strays around the school where my wife teaches, and probably would have lived a very short life had we not agreed to be adopted.  One of my wife's students had been taking care of him, but she couldn't keep him as her cat didn't get along with Junior.  He was a bit on the sickly side--worms, ear mites, and other various cat maladies were discovered when he made his debut at the veterinarian's office, illnesses that were dealt with and from which Junior has made a full and complete recovery.  These days, I believe the vet looks forward to seeing Junior more than Junior looks forward to the ride in the car and the sharp needle in the butt--our vet is a typical country vet, kind of gruff--but when he sees Junior, his eyes light up, he smiles broadly, and his comment is always the same--"C'mon over here, you pretty thing!"   Now, Junior, being the tough guy that he (thinks he) is, isn't too keen on being called pretty--he reminds us that he's rakishly handsome.  He's good, though--he'll let the vet do that thing that vets do, including the embarrasment of the ol' thermometer placement...

We noticed something else, too--Junior's an incurable mooch, and quite the chow hound.  In the mornings, he becomes the furry alarm clock, since his rather tubby tummy's Low Food Level annunciator is glowing and the Need Food Now alarm is blaring.  The only fix for these warnings is a reset via a bit of wet food (Tiger Food) followed by topping off the bowl of dry food (Tiger Chow).  At breakfast, he'll pace around until he gets a taste of milk.  At lunch or supper time, he knows the sound of the deli drawer in the refigerator, and knows there's a good chance that he light get a scrap of cheese if he's persistent enough.  He's definitely a ladies' man (read that as spoiled rotten mama's boy), and he comes across as a bit too brave for his size--that is, until the doorbell rings.  Then he high-tails it for cover.  Yeah, some mighty tiger....

Being curious creatures, some cats have problems coexisting with any hobby that involves little piece parts.  Funny, neither Samantha nor Junior seem to pay the models any mind, aside from a curious look and maybe a sniff or two of an untended-to model.  Samantha's interest ended abruptly when she leapt onto an oversize shelf and launched a recently re-finished B-17 across the room, and Junior--for all of his "mightyness"--had always been more of a looker than a toucher.  He'll see models on the table, all set up for a photo session, and he may jump on the table and sniff the little cars or airplanes, but after that he'll jump back onto the floor and talk it over with some Tiger Chow.  The tough part lately for Junior has been not being able to join us in the workshop-we've had some things moved around to access the attic and he's been blocked out.  That's where Junior's interest in the hobby lies--he likes to sit with us as we're building or painting our little creations.  When he's not doing that, he's sleeping by the sliding doors ("running a security check", we're told) or curled up with his mama.  What a life...