Pay me per hole, please!

I calculated a total of 2,456 holes that I had to drill! And not only that, each side of each hole had to be chamfered with a countersink bit for easier threading. That's another 4,912 passes. Luckily I had a good jig setup on my drill press. These aluminum panels will become sliding doors on my shelf, above my workstation. The earlier pressboard and glued fabric version was an abysmal failure.

Some yellow leaves

My latest tree seems to be surviving the winter okay. However, I notice some yellowing of leaves (lower part of canopy). I think I've learned my lessons with the tree out front — don't over-water. In fact, I haven't given this tree a drop of piped water since mid-December. There has been plenty of rain.

Perhaps the soil is not draining fast enough?

Pittosporum Tarata

Towel warmer (purchase)

Just got another towel warmer from Bed Bath & Beyond (from the local physical store).

Towel warmers, as you may know, are rather simple fixtures. They mount on the wall or stand on the floor and need to be connected to an AC source, either by plugging to an outlet if it has a standard cord or by having it hardwired (permanently wired through the wall to a junction box). They typically range in price from about $75 to $200 — but many go up to hundreds of dollars with some models costing over a grand.

I knew about BB&B's Warmrails model for $50. It was a good deal. The only concern for me was how to mount it seamlessly and securely. It comes with a standard corded plug. I wanted one that I can have fixed to the wall and hardwired.

So last week, when I noticed their clearance on it for $25, I bought one, if only to see whether drastic modifications were necessary. For that price, it doesn't matter. The critical issue is being able to reroute the cord into the wall. As you can see from the photo, this seems possible.

With two bathrooms, I got two towel warmers. Equal opportunity. I won't be installing it anytime soon, but the sale is now. Get yours while they last.

Yes, I think I see new leaves!

In September 2004 I adjusted drip in this area to just one head per shrub (perhaps that's the rule — always just one driphead per plant?). A soaker hose was also added at the tree, but switched off with an inline valve. Hopefully the tree can take water from the shrubs under normal conditions. Turning the valve on would just be a convenience over hand-watering when conditions get super dry.

November and December also dumped a lot of water here, so I wonder if that helped or hindered the tree's recovery.

A closeup this morning of the leaves shows promise. I cannot claim success yet. Nor can I summarize my lessons. I definitely don't have a green thumb. Yet! I'll have to wait to see if the whole tree comes back, let alone grow to the size I want.

Pittosporum undulatum or Victorian box or Cheesewood.

Winter Euonymus

While the Euonymus shrubs turn reddish for the season, the mature boxwood (beyond, at the sidewalk) is turning yellow from my irrigation shutoff. It's a lesson for this site where the shallow hardpan stunts growth and diverts ground water, that even during this very wet winter, those shrubs still need constant water. See previous post when it was still green.

Emerald Gaiety Euonymus

Fluorescent shop light

How thin can a fluorescent light fixture be?



Conceivably, only as thick as the ballast! That's the thickest component. But realistically, the total thickness (or height) depends on the structural frame because each component has to mount on something. Here I'm using 1/4" plywood, aluminum flashing and 3/32" thick acrylic diffuser. The resulting fixture measures less than 1 3/4".

Maple end pieces define the shape. Aluminum flashing was cut to length, folded slightly and sandwiched between the maple and plywood. A small piece of aluminum covers the ballast for appearance. Fasteners are staples (spring and pneumatic driven) and screws (1/4" for sheet metal). There was hardly any drilling — just aim and shoot (or screw).

Why so thin?



Because it had to clear the overhead garage door.



Total cost
The 36" 30W T8 fluorescent tubes were relatively expensive at about $6.00 each due to being less common than the 48" size. For this garage, its brightness and proportions are perfect. Total cost including ballast, sockets, aluminum and tubes: $35 each. I built two.