Spring is coming . . .

This is the time of the year when the warming Sun moves northward at its fastest rate. Today (3/13), the vertical rays (subsolar point) are about 200 miles south of the Equator, and will cross that position on Sunday, March 20, 2022 at 8:33 am “my time” — your time will be different. Spring will have sprung.

A story this week was about Rod Stewart – the famous singer – filling potholes near his home because an ambulance had a burst tire and other drivers were bashing their cars up, and his Ferrari didn’t like the holes either.
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https://XXX.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/sir-rod-stewart-fills-potholes-26451565

So the question was asked by someone (Who?): How come there is enough asphalt for speed bumps, but not enough to fill potholes?
On I-90 east of Ellensburg there is a hole in the concrete – yes I hit it this week – and nearby are precast concrete barriers (aka Jersey Barriers).
Smallish ones of these weigh 750 pounds, ship 60 to the truck load, and cost $315.95 each.
Does anyone have Rod’s phone number?

I was on I-90 because this is vine pruning season. A direct flight to the vineyard is just 24 miles. Highway distance is 65, half of that on I-90. I skipped a few of the early days because of the cold. Others did prune. Also, we moved to afternoon (1 to 4) work, rather than the usual 9 to Noon. The next scheduled day is Thursday, St. Patrick’s Day, and the temperature my be high enough to go back to mornings.
Here is a link to a video showing the basics of vine pruning:
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https://XXX.youtube.com/watch?v=Pv-n2Bolps0

These are wine grapes and the pruning is designed to restrict the quantity and encourage the quality of the grapes.

The one-way drive for me takes 1.25 hours and about 3 gallons of gasoline. I last pruned in 2020 when the price as $2/gal. And now it is $4.40. Ouch. I’m now getting about 20 mpg with the F150 truck. The Subaru got 30. Ouch, again.

The building crew put all but two sheets of the blue metal roof on. The mist didn’t bother them, but when the temperature dropped to near freezing and they risked slipping on the metal, they stopped. There is trim to do, and then the siding – false sandstone on the lower part and fiber/cement siding on the rest of it. Meanwhile, I continue to clean up some of the debris and remove nails from the lumber that supported the old roof.
I’m contemplating a functioning and decorative sundial for the shed. The building does not have a fully South-facing wall so the design has to accommodate the imperfect angle to the sun.
Here the blue rectangle represents the building, with the Sun directly to the South. Actually, the orientation means the wall and sundial in early morning hours will be shaded, but better exposed in the late afternoon and early evenings. I have a different idea for the morning hours. More on this in a few weeks.

Goings on, on
The Naneum Fan

John