August 25, 2011 - We Built a Deck! Our old porch was overpainted and underwhelming, with just the right amount of dry rot. We tore out the old steps, floorboards and railings, and replaced them with new lumber. Looks pretty damn good, I must say. Can't wait to enjoy a beer on it tonight. Thanks to Dad and Constance for all your help.

July 7, 2011 - Bedroom Ceiling Fan I can't take credit for making this, but I did install it...in an 90-degree room...in the dark. Thanks to nurse Constance for her help during the procedure.

April 20, 2011 - EPIC Bagel Sandwich Take one whole wheat bagel. Toast. Butter if you choose. Add sharp cheddar cheese. Toast again. Add shredded black forest ham. Stack. Eat. Animate.

April 16, 2011 - Homemade Tortilla Chips It was raining. I did not feel like making a special trip to the store just to satisfy my craving for chips. Luckily, the recipe was right on the side of the corn flour bag. Add water, mix, flatten, cut into tiny triangles, and bake. Added the obilgatory salt and lime juice for flavor. Yum.

March 20, 2011 - TV Revisited After not being able to find a good way of hiding the thick column of cables decending from the shelf, I decided to route all cables through the wall to an outlet in the adjacent room. I ran extra A/V and power cords in case of future additions.

February 26, 2011 - Projector Fog Lights The stock fog lights were pretty bland. These new ones from Korea are projector-based, like shining the fog light through a magnifying glass. Since elbow room behind the bumper was limited, the entire bumper cover had to come off!

January 22, 2011 - Baked Ziti When in doubt, mix pasta, tomato sauce and various cheeses. It's a winning combo.

December 31, 2010 - Eliminating the TV Stand With the TV now mounted on the wall, having a big TV stand just for the dvd player and the Wii made little sense. IKEA has a 'handyman' corner full of misc. pieces. I found a 3' x 1' length of pre-stained pine. Two L-brackets support it all. Not having the stand there really makes the room feel larger. Total cost: under $10.

December 27, 2010 - Cat Door! Our dog likes the taste of cat food. Too much. So a need arose to separate canine and feline during mealtimes. A drill, saw, leftover firring strips and white paint did the trick.

October 27, 2010 - Icon Set Inspired by Adobe's CS3 icons (top left group), I created a whole set of minimalist, color-coded icons. The finished collection includes roughly 40 icons, and they look smashing when they're all together.

August 25, 2010 - Simple Notepad Keeping it all together is important. Two small alligator clips bind a stack of grid paper between cardstock covers. Simple.

July 19, 2010 - Reusing the Rain I built a rainwater collection barrel to save water for the garden and our other potted plants. Many how-to's can be found online, but the version I felt had the best mix of durablility and low cost can be found here. This is the test fitting - painting is next!

July 2, 2010 - Have Cookies Your Way Constance, not I, made these amazing Cheeseburger Cookies! They're York Peppermint Patties, shredded coconut, and colored vanilla icing sandwiched between 2 vanilla wafers. Thanks for the recipe, Mom!

June 16, 2010 - Garden Update Wow! Things are really taking off. We've got a few green beans ready to be picked. The squash is about 3" long, and the cucumbers just started appearing too. No tomatoes yet, but I bet they're just around the corner. More pics here.

May 5, 2010 - A Garden for Sweetie 16'x6' overall. Shale surrounds 2"x6" lumber frame. Fenced to keep the rabbits out. Constance planted a variety of veggies. Stay tuned for updates!

May 1, 2010 - Ground Wires Most of my car's ground wires were either in poor condition or missing altogether. These new ones are heavy gauge copper wire with crimped ring terminals. And of course I had to get red!