Wed 15 Oct 2008
The cover is drawn by John Higby, and the photo on the back was taken by me. Incidentally, the yo-yo in the photo on the back was also painted by John Higby. I’m pretty excited about the whole thing. One of the best parts about the card is that on the inside of the arm on the sunglasses I’m wearing in the photo it says, “Cash Money” in gold ink.
If you want a card, go here: http://markhayward.net/html/docs/tradingcards.html unless of course we already have an arrangment… you know who you are.
Mon 6 Oct 2008
I spent this last weekend in Chico California at the National Yo-yo Contest, and it was a lot of fun.
The official Duncan Crew photo for Nationals 2008. No one else was around but Mark McBride and me.
The trip out was more than a little brutal. First of all, any voyage with three different flights is going to be difficult. If you do take a trip with that many flights, I recommend that you don’t eat a bad sandwich in Las Vegas and then throw it back up on your next flight like I did. Not fun at all. It is very hard to puke on a plane and not get any on yourself. I still had another flight to go too. Once that horrific ordeal was over, the rest of the weekend went really well.
Whenever I go to a yo-yo contest or a juggling convention I usually have a goal in mind. For this contest I wasn’t really sure what my goal was until I looked at what I had packed. The most normal thing for people to bring to contests is a fairly big case full of yo-yos, and for some people, a few tops as well. I was trying to travel light to avoid the airline baggage fees, and I realized that I had packed a mere 4 yo-yos but I was bringing 8 tops. During the course of the weekend, two of the yo-yos never even made it out of my bag. I guess I’ve got tops on the brain.
I spent most of my time hanging out with my top-spinning friends. It was awesome. Alan Gray, Eric Wolff, Jon Gates, Jorge, Hans, Catherine and I had our own little posse of spin. We shared some tricks, and had a good battletop contest.
Alan, Eric, Me, Hans reflected in the spinning Silver Surfer top (a highly polished Quicksilver).
One thing I always forget about Nationals is how short it is. I got out to Chico on Thursday night, watched the Vice Presidential debate, and then hung out with the few others who were there. Friday it rained, so the prelims were moved to Saturday. The result for me was that the contest felt even shorter than normal. Since almost everyone goes home Sunday morning, the contest really felt like one day this year. It’s a lot of effort and money to get there for just one day.
There were some delays on my flights home, and I had to literally sprint through the Denver airport (at altitude, ug) after they called my name on the intercom. It took over 30 minutes to recover and stop coughing, but I made my flight. In the San Francisco airport there was an awesome exhibit about the space race and its effect on popular culture from the 30s through the 60s. They had toy robots and space guns and flying saucers and lunch boxes and all kinds of incredibly cool stuff. It was one of the highlights of the trip.
All in all it was a good weekend. I just wish Chico weren’t so far away from Pittsburgh.
Tue 19 Aug 2008
Posted by mark under Model A Ford, Model A Ford Maintenance
[5] Comments
Summary: when resurfacing the manifold, leave the exhaust and intake manifolds bolted together.
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Every maintenance saga starts off the same way: someone says something like, “Oh yeah, that should be an easy fix.†This time at least it wasn’t me who said it.
When I first got the engine running on my 1930 Model A Ford Sport Coupe I noticed that there was an imperfect seal between the engine block and the exhaust manifold. I could see little puffs of smoke coming out. If you’re not a car person, the exhaust manifold is a cast-iron branching tube that funnels the exhaust out of the engine and into the exhaust pipe. I mentioned the leak to my friend Devin, and he was the one who said the famous last words this time, “It’s easy to replace that gasket. You don’t even have to take the manifold all the way off to do it.â€
So I bought a new gasket, loosened the nuts on the manifold, slid out the old gasket, and slid in the new one. Easy. Except that it didn’t fix the problem.
I mentioned it to the guys at one of the meetings of the 3 Rivers Region Model A Ford Restorer’s Club and was told that I might have to have my manifold resurfaced. Apparently this is a common problem with Model A Ford manifolds. After a while the flat surfaces that are supposed to be perfectly flush with the side of the engine block get warped and no longer make a good seal. Fortunately Keith Waltower is in our club, and he is a very experienced mechanic of old cars. He told me of a NAPA shop down in Belle Vernon PA that had a giant belt sander that could do the resurfacing more quickly, easily, and cheaper than taking it to a machine shop. Apparently a lot of the cost of getting a part machined is in the set-up, and with a giant belt sander there would be no set-up.
I was trying to get the car ready to drive for a 4th of July parade in Cannonsburg with the Model A club in a couple of days, so I was in a bit of a hurry to get the job done. The place that Keith mentioned was about a 45 minute drive from my house, so I made a few calls to see if I could get the resurfacing done somewhere a little closer to home. Most places couldn’t do it soon enough, and they wanted about $80. So off I went to Belle Vernon with my exhaust manifold. In hind-sight I now know that this is where I made a critical mistake. You may even know what it is if you’re a Model A person, and we’ll get back to it later. (more…)
Sat 16 Aug 2008
Posted by mark under Performance Stories
[2] Comments
I got a call as we were driving home to Pittsburgh from the Midwest for a last-minute gig for the Sheetz Company. They have a big meeting coming up and the CEO wanted to have a fun video as an introduction to his big speech. Since the theme is “road trips”, he is going on an adventure-filled road trip in a go-kart with a racing suit and helmet on. My job was to be him when he pops into a Sheets convenience store for snacks and coffee.
Poised with my juggling-sandwiches.
Lookin’ good!
So I juggled sandwiches, grabbed snacks off the shelf with a juggler’s flair, and I even ordered a drink off the touch-screen ordering system while tossing a sandwich into the air with one hand, and holding a whole mess-o-snacks in the other. It was fun. I have to say that I was very impressed at how easy it was to order my drink. If I can do it while repeatedly tossing a sandwich into the air and catching it again with one hand while wearing a racing helmet, then I think the average Joe should be able do it under more normal circumstances. We finished the shoot with me balancing a stack of something like 10 cups and walking out the door. I tried to do it as a real balance, but the cup lids were too squishy, so we had to use gaffer’s tape to stick them together. After the juggling sequence I believe the CEO is going to bust out and do a little break-dancing (with someone else in the suit).
Things I learned while doing this video shoot:
Sheetz Inc. seems like a fun company, so I hope I get to work with them again.
Mon 11 Aug 2008
Posted by mark under General
Comments Off on I Guess That Wasn’t It
Three days after the giant fur wad, I brushed this pile out of my dog. I could’ve gotten more too if he hadn’t been so interested in those stupid squirrels. Also in the picture is the rake that I use to brush him.
Wed 6 Aug 2008
Posted by mark under General
[4] Comments
This is from just one brushing. No trick photography or fur-fluffing here either. That wad of fur really is bigger than his head. I am astonished at how much fur came out of my dog in the course of an hour. Normally he takes several days to lose his coat, but this seems to be most of it in one go. The fur wad is from yesterday; I brushed him again tonight, and while some more came out, it is negligible in comparison.
I wasn’t sure what to do with the giant fur wad, so I put it in a bag with a note that said, “With love, from Vader” and hung it on the neighbors door handle. We’ll see if they think that is funny.
Wed 6 Aug 2008
Posted by mark under General
Comments Off on My First Night With Three Dogs
Zephyr, Wylie, and Vader
This week I’m house-sitting and dog-sitting while I’m in Milwaukee performing at the WI State Fair. I always stay with my mother-in-law for Milwaukee gigs. It’s awesome. Partly because I can bring my dog (he gets along really well with Lynn’s dog), but also because it’s so much nicer and more comfortable than staying in a hotel for 11 days. This year Lynn and my wife decided that it would be a good time to take a trip. They are off in Yellowknife Canada (WAY up there, almost to the Arctic Circle), and at the same time my sister-in-law and her family went on vacation too (without their dog). So here I am with three dogs. It’s just four guys hanging out. Not much talking going on, but there’s lots of sniffing and wrestling. It’s pretty great.
When working at the fair my hours can be pretty variable, but basically I am home a little after six or seven each evening. Monday was my first night where it was just the dogs and me. On my way home from the fair I had meant to stop at the store to pick up a couple of things. The reason to do it on the way home is so that I didn’t get the dogs all riled up with my arrival, and then immediately leave them again, thus making them more crazy. But I was already home and didn’t want to leave the dogs again, so it was time for a bachelor adventure in the car. Two of the dogs (Vader and Zephyr) are fine off leash as long as there are no bunnies around, and the third dog (Wylie) has to be on-leash all the time. I put Wylie on-leash and the four of us got in the car and went off to the store.
It was a nice, quick little adventure, and we were pulling back in to the driveway in 15 minutes. As I pulled in I saw that there was a bunny sitting within 6 inches of the edge of both the street and the driveway. I rolled Vader’s window up enough so that he wouldn’t jump out, and he gave that bunny the major “I’m gonna eat you” stink-eye. Amazingly, even with Vader leering directly overhead, the bunny didn’t move. We got to the end of the driveway at the back of the house, and forgetting about the bunny, I got out and opened the door for the dogs. Vader had not forgotten. I was reaching for Wylie so I could put the leash on him when Vader made a break for the bunny at the front of the house. My momentary distraction of trying to call Vader back meant that I missed Wylie’s collar, and then Zephyr got past me as well. Three dogs on the hunt. It was 9pm, and the street was dark so I didn’t think there would be any car traffic, but it was warm enough that the neighbors had their windows open, so I was trying to not yell too loudly to get the dogs back. Big surprise, that didn’t work.
The bunny sprinted across the street and under the neighbor’s porch. Vader and Wylie were in pursuit, and when Wylie got right up next to the neighbor’s window he let out one of his astonishingly loud, blood-curdling bark-howls. And then another. And then another. In a matter of moments Wylie’s bark-howls and my yelling had all four neighbors out of their houses. I had gotten Zephyr by the collar, and I was trying unsuccessfully to get Vader and Wylie under control. The neighbors, who I had never met before, were all very nice and helped me get Wylie on-leash. Since I only had the one leash with me, I got the other two dogs excited about running home with me, and we were off as I called a thank you and an apology to the neighbors. It was more than a little embarrassing.
Mon 28 Jul 2008
Posted by mark under General
Comments Off on Flying Has Become Very Unpleasant
Maybe I’m just getting bitter, but I used to really enjoy flying. Admittedly I have flown a lot, and anything loses its luster when you do it too much, but I really think something has changed with the whole experience of getting on an airplane.
I recently took a trip to Denver for a two-day gig. Despite the fact that nothing really went wrong, the portions of the trip that involved airplanes and airports were incredibly unpleasant. I drove to the Cincinnati airport, and easily found the remote parking lot. In fact, the shuttle bus was waiting for me as I closed my trunk. The parking people did a great job and were very efficient, but I was a little worried that I was going to get hassled about my carry-on hat box not qualifying as a “personal item”. I was also a little preoccupied with dealing with my new fold-up mini luggage cart that I bought in order to avoid the $25 fee for a second piece of checked luggage. Neither thing was a big deal, but they added a little stress to my life.
Check-in went smoothly, and there was no line, but I had to futz with my new cart (that I only bought to avoid airline fees), and that took a little time and added a little stress. The flight out was uneventful, but I was feeling especially crammed-in for some reason this time. There was a small touch screen in the back of the seat in front of me that allowed me to watch movies for free, and that was awesome… the high point of the flying experience for sure.
Once I got into Denver I had to find my rental car. (more…)
Wed 9 Jul 2008
Posted by mark under General
Comments Off on Super-Special Parking for my Prius on the Pennsylvania Turnpike
There is a new Service Plaza (and maybe several) on the Pennsylvania Turnpike (Hwy 76), and on my recent trip from Pittsburgh to New York I noticed the sign pictured above. Not only is there extra-special parking reserved for “Low-Emitting Fuel-Efficient Vehicles” but it is also right up front, next to the Handicap spaces. I was amazed.
I had heard about preferred parking for hybrid vehicles, but this was the first time I actually got to use it. On the way East I hadn’t noticed it until after I had parked, but on the way back I drove right up to the front and took my place on the “I am so special” throne.
The irony of it in my mind is that when I am on the road I actually prefer to park as far away from the building as possible so that I can get a little walking in and stretch my legs. My first thought was that most people driving super-efficient cars would also welcome the walk, but then I remembered that young, enviro-leaning, wiry , jumpy guys like myself are not the typical Toyota Prius drivers. Regardless, even if it’s just a parking space, I think it’s great to see official recognition that people driving fuel-efficient, low-emission vehicles are doing us all a favor.
Sat 5 Jul 2008
Posted by mark under General
[2] Comments
My birthday was a few days ago, and it was a great one. I met the 3 Rivers Model A Ford Restorers Club at Kennywood (the local amusement park) early in the morning, and we all drove our antique cars onto the park grounds so that the patrons could see them. We were invited there as a part of Kennywood’s “Celebrate Pittsburgh’s 250th Anniversary” week, so everyone in our cars got in free, and each car got an additional 4 free day passes to use another time. It was a total coincidence that it fell on my birthday, but I couldn’t have planned it better myself.
We were led onto the grounds by a staff member in his car, and it was like our own personal secret parade, since the grounds were still closed and no one was watching. Once we were parked, the club members all took turns watching the cars so that people could get out and enjoy the rides and other things going on in the park. It actually worked out better than I had expected. Some of the older members in the club really just wanted to hang out by the cars anyway, so the younger members were free to go on rides. It was awesome. We had to be back at our cars by 5:00 to exit the park, but if we had wanted to we could have re-entered with a hand stamp.
Kennywood is a great park. It’s not very big, but they have done a fantastic job of packing in the rides. There are a ton of roller coasters in addition to all the other kinds of rides. There are only two steel coasters, all the rest are wood, and can be a little abusive in the way they rattle you around. I now understand why Kennywood is the favorite park of my coaster-enthusiast friend Chris LaReau. He prefers the rides that knock you around, so there is plenty of action for him at Kennywood. My favorites were Ghostwood Estate, a modern day version of the interactive shooting gallery, and the Exterminator, where your car actually plays the role of a mutant rat that scurries around and twists and turns in the dark. Amazing.
On the way home it became painfully clear that I had not yet succeeded in fixing the exhaust leak in the engine of the Model A. Lenore and I both arrived home with Carbon Monoxide headaches and a little nausea, so I vowed that I would not drive the car again until that was fixed. On to another Model A maintenance saga….