Paul TIKI

Sending Prayers and good vibes for the Bear and his family.

Thank you again everyone! I had a CT scan last week and the appointment yesterday. No signs of the nasty little bugger Cancer found! I'm regaining some weight and some strength. I still want this dang feeding tube out, but I need to gain a bit more weight first. Taste buds are still jacked up, but improving very slowly. It's getting warmer out so I'll be firing up the forge soon, I hope!

Trying to decide what to do with the inlaw's old back deck. Last year we yanked it down and built a new, much sturdier deck for them, hauled off the wood from the old. There's still some good stuff there, so I don't want to consign it all to the burn barrel. I'm thinking of maybe building some wall like stuff to sheild two sides to the area I use to forge. Or maybe as flooring for that area. I don't really know

Dad didn't talk too much about his time over there. Most of what he did discuss was his time spent basically on a base and in a bunker. I gather that he told my older brother more than he told me. I was a baby and my brother is 12 years my senior, so he would have been at that age to ask questions. I understand that he told my brother something that highlighted some of the dangers and mom overheard. She was evidently kind of ticked that he hadn't told her

George I know I'm a bit late to this chunk of the thread, but you reminded me of something about my dad. He served over there. Two tours with about a year in between. If I recall correctly he got back to the states in Mid to late 1970 so you might not have crossed paths. He was in Intelligence, I don't know exactly what unit, but I wish I did. I think he was a Captain at the time. When he got back he made Major, Was stationed in DC for a few years, and went to CGSC and then Fort Devens, but then he retired. Thank you for your service sir

Hey Tap Tap Bang! And Welcome. One thing I learned is that you can set up a very simple and small forge setup that can actually travel. Look up the JABOD forge. JABOD stands for Just A Box Of Dirt. Then look up Improvised Anvils. You can pack up a shop in to a relatively small space, It's how I got started. Anyway, I built a roughly 1/2 by 1 meter by 10 centimeter wooden box. I took a couple of empty 20 kilogram cat litter buckets with lids that I filled with Sand and some bricks. I still use a chunk of scrap steel as an anvil. You can use a chunk of steel pipe with a hair dryer taped to the end for the air supply and lump charcoal as fuel. Anyway, you can pack it all up into a surprisingly small footprint, which is what I did to store it in the shed over the winter the first year I decided to start. Oh, and the whole thing didn't cost much money wise. I later upgraded to an inexpensive propane forge, which takes up even less space/mass. for stock to make some very basic things I have used cast off chunks of rebar from construction sites, I have talked to a couple of Auto mechanics to see if they would let me raid their scrap bins, and I have spent about 20 dollars(US) on some landscaping spikes that are really just 25 cm long nails. Railroad spikes are also some good stock to work with if you can get them legally (not difficult but take care, at least in the US) All of that is fairly small, space wise. It might be small enough to pack in a caravan, depending on how big the caravan is. your campsites might have rules that don't let you set up and actually forge, but maybe not. Just be aware of potential fire conditions. If nothing else, you can pretty cheaply get what you need to get started, even while travelling and then set up later at home. Anyway, on this site you will find instructions on the JABOD forge, Improvised Anvils, and such. I believe you can also find some stuff on viking traveling forges elsewhere on the internet, which might give you other ideas. My biggest regret is that I didn't start doing this way sooner, especially once I found how cheap and relatively easy it is to get started. I still have a very long way to go, but....I get better every day I go out and do it. Don't wait like I did to find the perfect place or set up.

some good news, although without pics today. Artie has integrated very well into the fur family. He just won't hold still for pics

Outstanding! thank you!

Thanks Frosty! I hadn't thought of that but theres a couple of those stores I visit from time to time

I do have a project in mind. I'm going to make a bunch of simple leaf handled hoof picks for the guys out where my autisitic son goes for horse rides every week. I need to do some more checking but it's a simple tool that most everyone who lives around horses keeps with them (according to the ultimate trustworthy source, the internet). I'm not super familiar with that side of things. I have debated on whether I should talk to them about getting some old spent horseshoes to use as stock. Or who knows? Anyone here lives around a lot of horses know of a simple tool a novice could make that would be useful to someone who spends a lot of time in the saddle and also runs a horse boarding outfit?

So HR issues were solved, finally. Still dont remember about half of December and most of January. Feeling a bit better, memory is improving, I hope. Back to work close to full 40 hours a week. I've lost a great deal of weight. Swinging a hammer is diffucult right now so nothing happening at the froge for the moment. Needs to warm up a touch first.

cautiously optimistic. there are a few more scans at various time intervals, but this is good

That is the best way I have ever heard that put and I will be stealing it!

kind of back at a low point again. issues with work and hr and paperwork and time off. And still feeling like dookie. I feel like I have lost most of January. It's not all negative. Last CT scan doesn't show anything so cancer appears to be gone Catbert, the evil HR director is real!

Well there is still a bit of bruising, and I lost a day or two, but I want to say thanks to everyone for the prayers and healing light. I'm taking in more calories now, but that's the purpose of the darn tube to begin with. I had an acceptable Christmas, minus the traditional insane amount of food. Didn't think I would miss that, but I did. Mom was a great cook, and food meant family in a real way. This year instead it was helping assemble toys for the grandkids. Same quality of memories, but less potential need for TUMS. I seem to have lost a day this weekend. I guess my meds are better than I thought. I would have liked to enjoy more food to balance the mandatory battery slinging and screwdriver weilding. Oh well. I got to see the grandkids and that was the important thing. Inlaws a stuff too, but grandkids.... priceless