Hobbies
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Finished up a few hobby projects.
This one took up far too much space in my garage all winter because I was trying to find a used manifold for it because a new one costs more than I paid for the whole grill. Finally gave up and bought the new one and it works!
Behold the glory of the 2007 Weber S-650 Summit Grill!
Nicest grill I’ve ever cooked on. Reminds me of the restaurant grill I ran for part of a summer when I was in high school.
Built in smoker box and an infrared burner attached to the lid. Not sure what that is for - rotisserie?
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1975 Marantz 2220b receiver. As receivers go it’s nothing high end but it’s very similar to the one I bought new when I got my first real job. Sounds like I remember. Cleaned it up and fixed a few issues. AM radio section doesn’t work but I don’t listen to AM radio anyway.
I even got the original box!
Scored a pair of equally geriatric HH Scott speakers for $40 from a guy cleaning out his barn. They’re actually nicer than the ones I had back in the day.
Bet you guys had a setup like it at some point. What was it? Do you still have it?
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1975 Marantz 2220b receiver. As receivers go it’s nothing high end but it’s very similar to the one I bought new when I got my first real job. Sounds like I remember. Cleaned it up and fixed a few issues. AM radio section doesn’t work but I don’t listen to AM radio anyway.
I even got the original box!
Scored a pair of equally geriatric HH Scott speakers for $40 from a guy cleaning out his barn. They’re actually nicer than the ones I had back in the day.
Bet you guys had a setup like it at some point. What was it? Do you still have it?
1975 Marantz 2220b receiver.
When I first saw your photo, I wondered if we were supposed to be looking at the receiver, or the vases!
When I was growing up, I loved listening to records.... But I don't have any of the stereo equipment I had in days of yore. Nor do I have any records.
What will you be listening to? Do you have a big record collection?
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Gave away the vinyl years ago and I don’t miss it. Cant be bothered to get off the couch to change records.
I plugged a little Bluetooth adaptor in to the receiver and stream to it from my phone. It’s like having the largest record collection ever!
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Gave away the vinyl years ago and I don’t miss it. Cant be bothered to get off the couch to change records.
I plugged a little Bluetooth adaptor in to the receiver and stream to it from my phone. It’s like having the largest record collection ever!
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Another project. Finishing a little section of the basement as a kitchen. Already have a nice kitchen in the house but it makes Sharon nervous when I cook stuff in it even when I clean up. I also like to cook odd things that no one will eat but me. The second oven will be handy during g the holidays for large gatherings.
This is where the sink will go. Not the ideal location but it’s where the plumbing is.
The cabinets came out the garage at an AirBnb house two years back. Not great cabinets but too good to throw out. Nice enough for the basement. That house is under contract right now -wish us luck!
The freezer will stay but move to another wall to allow for a smallish cross top freezer/fridge.
This is the long wall across from the counter. Drywall work is done now, waiting for texture/paint. It will have the range, a little counter, the freezer and some shelving.
Added lighting because at my age I need plenty and I had some fixtures I moved here from CA. Felt good to use my tools again. Haven’t decided on flooring - might just polish the concrete but I have my eye on some commercial (airport grade) carpet tiles at Habitat for Humanity going for cheap. I’ll not be frying anything and the basement stays very dry so they should work.
Lots to do and I’m busy enough in retirement that I can’t imagine how I ever managed to find time for work!
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Wow.
Well radios, I've had a few, Toshiba with cassette deck as a kid, Bush, Sony cd ghetto blaster, Sony micro system, small Roberts digital.For many years I've wanted a good quality SW receiver.
Yesterday I went to a local shop, old guy in a small room filled with shelves of used stuff like yours, of all ages, many of which he was repairing. Loads of transmitters too.
I was way way out of my depth
I'll take any advice & recommendations.
Currently on my shortlist are
Tuscon H501x (for SW)
Ruark RS3 (digital) -
Not familiar with either of those brands. Mark knows a lot more than I do and maybe he’ll chime in. I will say that I prefer analog components because digital stuff can be impossible to repair if it breaks.
What do you want to do with your new system? Is SW short wave?
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Another project. Finishing a little section of the basement as a kitchen. Already have a nice kitchen in the house but it makes Sharon nervous when I cook stuff in it even when I clean up. I also like to cook odd things that no one will eat but me. The second oven will be handy during g the holidays for large gatherings.
This is where the sink will go. Not the ideal location but it’s where the plumbing is.
The cabinets came out the garage at an AirBnb house two years back. Not great cabinets but too good to throw out. Nice enough for the basement. That house is under contract right now -wish us luck!
The freezer will stay but move to another wall to allow for a smallish cross top freezer/fridge.
This is the long wall across from the counter. Drywall work is done now, waiting for texture/paint. It will have the range, a little counter, the freezer and some shelving.
Added lighting because at my age I need plenty and I had some fixtures I moved here from CA. Felt good to use my tools again. Haven’t decided on flooring - might just polish the concrete but I have my eye on some commercial (airport grade) carpet tiles at Habitat for Humanity going for cheap. I’ll not be frying anything and the basement stays very dry so they should work.
Lots to do and I’m busy enough in retirement that I can’t imagine how I ever managed to find time for work!
@Steve-Miller When I was a kid my Italian grandma has a kitchen in her basement (in addition to the main kitchen). She had these huge tables down there, we used all the surfaces when it was time to make pasta or bread. Whenever I was there, I "helped" but most certainly not in any way that was useful!
Anyway, I always associate a second kitchen with that.
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@Steve-Miller When I was a kid my Italian grandma has a kitchen in her basement (in addition to the main kitchen). She had these huge tables down there, we used all the surfaces when it was time to make pasta or bread. Whenever I was there, I "helped" but most certainly not in any way that was useful!
Anyway, I always associate a second kitchen with that.
@Steve-Miller When I was a kid my Italian grandma has a kitchen in her basement (in addition to the main kitchen). She had these huge tables down there, we used all the surfaces when it was time to make pasta or bread. Whenever I was there, I "helped" but most certainly not in any way that was useful!
Anyway, I always associate a second kitchen with that.
There is a large Portuguese population here and my best friend growing up was a Portuguese immigrant so I spent a lot of time with her and her family. Every Portuguese house had a second kitchen in the basement!
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My one indulglance will be a solid wood desk (solid wood, not wood veneer glued over wood planks glued together) 60" wide and somewhat deep (maybe 30").
I'm buying it from an Amish company that hand makes furniture in Pennsylvania.
It has simple legs and a "pencil drawer." Or three if you want.
You choose the size, the wood, the stain, matte, semi-gloss, or high-glass, the fixture tones, and the actual fixtures.
It will be my work surface.
It will be 1/2 the price of their similar tables because it's a basic table. It doesn't have a particular style, e.g. Mission.
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My Lithuanian mom had an oven in the basement that she used during the summer. But it was just an oven,; there was no kitchen setup with tables and other workspace.
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When we were house-shopping here in suburban New York, it was surprising to see how many houses had second kitchens. Many older houses here have been divided into multi-family rentals, sometimes being reconfigured more than once over the years, so sometimes you could tell the extra kitchen was left over from a previous configuration. Our house was built as a single-family home, but it had been converted into a two-family sometime before 1925. When we converted it back into a single home, we made the second kitchen into a master bath.
I can see the logic in not tearing out something that's expensive and could be useful, but sometimes you might want to use the space differently. My son and DIL were looking at houses with the thought of perhaps moving here someday, and my DIL said plaintively, "I'd really like a house that has more bathrooms than kitchens." I could see her point.
In other cases, you could tell the second kitchen was built for "overflow" cooking. Our realtor said this was common in Italian families. There was a time when I routinely cooked in my single solitary kitchen for ten and sometimes more, and I never thought, "If I only had another kitchen...." You'd have to have a second cook to keep you from constantly running up and down stairs, burning things on both floors.
People from earlier generations in the South had huge families and managed with one kitchen, even when they had big gardens and had to can and pickle a ton of stuff. I guess even basic household work flow is cultural to a degree.
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As for hobbies, these days I'm trying not to let my writing become one.
My hydroponic gardens are the hobby where I'm most consistent, because otherwise the plants will die.
I've been playing the piano more this year, though not too much lately.
I still like to cook, although lately, it has mostly taken the form of, "Here's a cool-looking thing at the farmer's market. I'm going to take it home and see what I can do with it!"
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When we were house-shopping here in suburban New York, it was surprising to see how many houses had second kitchens. Many older houses here have been divided into multi-family rentals, sometimes being reconfigured more than once over the years, so sometimes you could tell the extra kitchen was left over from a previous configuration. Our house was built as a single-family home, but it had been converted into a two-family sometime before 1925. When we converted it back into a single home, we made the second kitchen into a master bath.
I can see the logic in not tearing out something that's expensive and could be useful, but sometimes you might want to use the space differently. My son and DIL were looking at houses with the thought of perhaps moving here someday, and my DIL said plaintively, "I'd really like a house that has more bathrooms than kitchens." I could see her point.
In other cases, you could tell the second kitchen was built for "overflow" cooking. Our realtor said this was common in Italian families. There was a time when I routinely cooked in my single solitary kitchen for ten and sometimes more, and I never thought, "If I only had another kitchen...." You'd have to have a second cook to keep you from constantly running up and down stairs, burning things on both floors.
People from earlier generations in the South had huge families and managed with one kitchen, even when they had big gardens and had to can and pickle a ton of stuff. I guess even basic household work flow is cultural to a degree.
@Mary-Anna said:
"I'd really like a house that has more bathrooms than kitchens." I could see her point.
"overflow" cooking.
I love this expression! That’s basically my grandma. She cooked for family. She cooked for her church. She always made enough to feed an army.
My aunt made a photo/recipe book and I can’t use most of the recipes because it makes enough for 200 people and I don’t know how to scale!
. There are these handwritten recipes that call for 10 eggs… (like, you know where a normal person would use two eggs to make something that serves five or six people) -
Another project. Finishing a little section of the basement as a kitchen. Already have a nice kitchen in the house but it makes Sharon nervous when I cook stuff in it even when I clean up. I also like to cook odd things that no one will eat but me. The second oven will be handy during g the holidays for large gatherings.
This is where the sink will go. Not the ideal location but it’s where the plumbing is.
The cabinets came out the garage at an AirBnb house two years back. Not great cabinets but too good to throw out. Nice enough for the basement. That house is under contract right now -wish us luck!
The freezer will stay but move to another wall to allow for a smallish cross top freezer/fridge.
This is the long wall across from the counter. Drywall work is done now, waiting for texture/paint. It will have the range, a little counter, the freezer and some shelving.
Added lighting because at my age I need plenty and I had some fixtures I moved here from CA. Felt good to use my tools again. Haven’t decided on flooring - might just polish the concrete but I have my eye on some commercial (airport grade) carpet tiles at Habitat for Humanity going for cheap. I’ll not be frying anything and the basement stays very dry so they should work.
Lots to do and I’m busy enough in retirement that I can’t imagine how I ever managed to find time for work!
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