So, I found lurking in the garage the precise right colour for spraying my bike. Pink safety paint.Anyway, my frame’s all shibby and I’ve put the first coat of “Jesus Christ That’s Pink” paint onto the tank… Clicky for more bike-in-bits Pr0n. One thing though, is it just me or does the bike frame look like some sort of prehistoric creature waiting to eat people?
Category: General
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Progress on the Bikes
So, I’ve been pretty busy today, I’ve completed the occy health forms and organised getting my vaccination results back from the occy health dept at UBHT. I’ve ironed my clothes (although I’ve noticed a stain on my posh shirt, so I need to clean it again tomorrow). I’ve (like I mentioned) been packing up books and uni stuff, and got pretty much all of them boxed up. But the main thing that’s got me feeling a bit better is progress on the bikes.
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zip -a -r boxes.zip KateWorld/*
I think I may own too many books. Too many CDs. Too much stuff generally. I realise that my insistance on doing all my maintainance myself, and having a bike mid-restoration does mean that there’s a certain ‘more stuff’ theme that’s going to be present.
I know that having trained as a biochemist, worked in IT and then moved to nursing there’s a certain amount of books and evidence of practice development which are kind of required. I used to be good at backing up my PC and doing semi-incremental backups so there’s a large wodge of CDs (but then I’ve not used the stuff on them for years; do I really need them? I’ve packed them…).
And unlike my normal approach of packing all my stuff up in one fell swoop just before I move, this time I’m just doing bits and pieces. I’ve been trying to clear Lauren’s shelves and then I started on my own set in the office – the idea behind that was that I could clean the area up a bit and it’d be a bit nicer to get some space in there.
It’s a bit distressing though to find that I’ve packed 12 boxes with books /folders (although some of that space has been packed out with odds and sods). 12 boxes. I think that’s more or less all of them. Not, you know, a true 100%, but we’re now down to the odd book that’s kicking round the house somewhere, as opposed to shelves full; but I do feel quite… frustrated by it. I thought I’d got rid of loads – and it’s not that many when they’re out, it’s what, 8 shelves full? Still, apart from one box they’re all easily liftable, and that last box is within my capacity to lift, it’s just ‘a bit heavy’. Of course, things get harder from here on in. I’ve got CD’s to pack, but I don’t want to start on them until nearer the move; same with DVDs and vinyl. I should, I guess, start sorting out the garage and stuff to go, but hey. I’ve also got to leave some of the computer stuff unpacked until after I’ve reinstalled / installed whatever.
I’m still waiting for the re-test results on my motherboard, I hope it fails; I *know* it’s faulty, but that doesn’t mean that it’ll fail at the time it’s meant to. Bah. I don’t really mind moving, but I hate it dragging out, and I really wish I could be 100% about where I’m going.
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It’s weird being a leftie
I’m not left handed, I *eat* UK lefthanded (which confusingly appears to be American (or at least alaskan) right handed), but apart from that I’m a rightie. Yesterday I cut my finger on a bit of motorbike. Not a big cut, a little deeper than normal, but not sufficient to really cause issues. Only today it was a bit sore in the shower, so I’ve been attempting to lead with my left.
It feels very odd, very very odd. Just for fun I’ve been trying to properly work left handed and it’s a very strange sensation.
In other news, I’m over my dumb mistakes yesterday, Dave reminded me that I should have replaced the pressure plate with it’s teeny tiny fracture in anyway, so really, I should just let it all go.
So I have.
Ais has headed off too, I was worried about her visiting, we’ve been good talking online and whatever for ages, but I’d not seen her since she moved up north. In the end I’ve had a really nice, chilled out weekend; laughed loads, caught up and had a great deal of fun :-)
Ra!
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Me and MZ Clutches
We have a history me and MZ Clutches. On my 125 I managed to snap the clutch bolts and destroy a clutch basket. I think about the third attempt I managed to actually assemble a clutch that worked. Not well, but it worked. I’ve tried several times on the 125s since and I think maybe succeeded once?
So when I looked at the clutch on the 251 I thought ‘do I need to do this’? And thought, well, I’ve bought the parts, Dave’s lent me a clutch compressor bolt, I may as well. This was what we term ‘a mistake’. Disassembly went perfectly, I was left with a clutch in pieces. I carefully reassembled with new plates, alligned everything, turned it over and placed the six springs in the wrong place. After about an hour of cursing and a loud ‘crack’ when attempting to tighten things up it became apparent that I was a complete and total moron. It’s blindingly obvious – if you open your eyes and look at the thing, that the springs did *not* go where I’d put them.
So, I took it apart, undid my stupiditiy and put it all back aligned right this time and started tightening the compressor bolt – with the little nuts all ready to go back on. The small crack in the pressure plate that had been there at the start of disassembly worried me, but I studiously ignored it.
However, as I neared the point of putting the six dinky little nuts on that hold it all compressed, I looked and thought ‘it doesn’t look right – the clutch plates haven’t been drawn together tightly’; with that crack on the pressure plate I was particularly wary about using the nuts to tighten it up – ‘cos it might be uneven, so I gave another tweak to the compression bolt.
*CRACK*
Fuck.
The pressure plate bearing and the pressure plate parted company… the alloy that held the bearing fracturing (I’d probably damaged it when I’d attempted to assemble the clutch wrong). I rarely reach the point of crying over frustration, but today it was just a bit much. I’m so close to having my bike back, I’d paid for new pressure plates, I owe Dave postage and whatnot for the new bits, and I really felt like a fucking idiot. I was *so* angry at myself for not taking care when I’d put it back together in the first place.
Dumb, dumb, dumb. I’m meant to be good with mechanical stuff. Scratch that, I *am* good with Mechanical stuff, but sometimes I can still be mindblowingly stupid.
It’s also rare that I give up on something, but I decided I was just sick of it. I just ordered, from burwin, a complete – assembled – new clutch. Next time I’ll know how to do it, but this time I just can’t face it again.
In other news Aisling is visiting. I’ll write about that *after* the weekend.
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Les Paul, Who’s Les Paul?
Sometimes I think I’ve been born in the wrong decade, everyone I’ve told about me finding some Gramophone records with Les Paul on has looked at me with a ‘and’ look on their face. Les Paul. Famous guitarist. Had a guitar named after him. That Les Paul. Electric Guitar – on a gramophone record, do you feel the wrong? It’s cool.
Heh, so I found Les Paul records today, two of them. I’ve only tested out one because I’d forgotten how phenominally loud my gramophone is. And loud it certainly is – particularly the whistling blues one. That was quite shockingly uncomfortable to listen to at ‘close range’. Still.
So, I had an ultra-chilled-out, very selfish afternoon during which I probably spent more than I earned today, but at the end of the day, my eyebrows are done, I’ve got 2 really awesome gramophone records and my hair is shorter than it’s ever been in my entire life. Yes, really. It is. From the first time it grew when I was a baby to *now* it’s never been as short as it is now.
I got *sir’d* in Tesco. Now, I don’t exactly have *huge* breasts, but they are quite definately visible under a tight teeshirt. I nearly died laughing anyhow.
*waves at Kara*
Anyhow. Yes. I had a very relaxed day, met up with someone I used to work with – randomly – waiting at a bus stop (not a bust stop, I have such a one track mind); but couldn’t stay to chat, ‘cos Onne was, well, meant to be meeting me at my house between 5 and 6. Given that at this point it was actually 5pm, I had to cut the converstation somewhat short. Still, it was really nice to see her – so I headed back, managing (shockingly) not to get caught in too much traffic, and cooked my (popular abomination of a) curry. Which seemed to go down well, we chilled out more, listenened to music and chatted before people headed home. Friends, that’s what I’ll miss most about Bristol….
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Bother
So, I was having a really nice day. No, seriously, I was all chilled out all ready to post a chilled out happy post. See, I’ve spent the day working on my bike, I love working with my hands, and being able to work on my bike without the pressure of “I NEED THIS DONE” meant I could relax and take it slow. I’ve changed the rather worn out top-end-bearing, although having had a feel I think the bottom end might not be 100% great. I’ve popped the new chain on (a manky job that was) and replaced the speedo drive. I’ve reconnected the speedo cable – and stripped down / removed the left hand clutch cover.
And the nice bit? When I got tired I stopped. I popped my tools away, and made sure everything was together enough that I’d not lose track of screws, and t’da, it was done. It’s really nice to do that. However, the sheen of the goodness of my mood was removed by the generous freecycler who decided to help save the environment by saving – the petrol I’d’ve used to go to my friend’s house for lunch, the petrol I’d’ve used taking her down to town, the energy that would have been wasted sending an e-mail to say he wasn’t coming, or ringing. His generousity is quite incredible. He has until the end of the day to mail me and explain his absence before I offer the projector to someone else. Someone… reliable.
And then the sheen fell right off when I got the message saying that Scan had ‘tested’ my motherboard and it was fine. Uh hu. Yeah. So I rang them and said “test it a bit harder”. Which they said they would, but I can just see it coming back to me being just as faulty as it was the day it left. Ah well, I’m going to find my dress (for work tomorrow) and head outwards to the land of the Nikki.
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The end or the beginning
So, I’ve finished my training as a nurse; assuming I pass the last two assignments. I’ve got a job, assuming my references are okay. I left my placement for the last time today – I always feel sad leaving a placement, but this one I’ve enjoyed so much more than I was expecting, and I really felt part of the team at the end of the day.
I am sad to be leaving. Really sad. In fact, I felt like crying as I walked out that door the last time. Yesterday I had an impromptu shower; squirted with water and then a fair load of sterile water tipped over my head – they were planning much evil for today, but we were so insanely busy (the best, most award winning bit, was the patient arriving while the previous patient was still (a) in the bed (b) not handed over to the discharge lounge (c) waiting for tablets to be prescribed. I’d’ve been angry, but it was my last day and the nurse-in-charge was quite pissed off enough for everyone) that it didn’t happen; much I suspect, to their disappointment.
I’ve got a recipe which I have to pass on – lots of complaints about “why didn’t you tell us you could cook”… Heh. The answer is, of course, because then you’d’ve wanted me to cook.
Yeah, so, I’ve been looking at places to live, and actually found a potential place in
WokinghamWoking; which was a bit of a shock. We’ll have to see how things all pan out; the hospital accomodation’s not as cheap as I thought – or more accurately, you get less for your money than I thought.It is all a bit scary; everyone’s like “Wow, you’re just upping and leaving?!” – and I guess it’s a bit – something not many people consider; I guess the whole plan to move to Canada has kind of reduced the impact of the whole ‘oh my god I’m going to leave the city I’ve lived in for 6 years, and move house, away from my friends’, and all this insanity. And yeah it’s starting to hit me that while it’s no-where-near the scale of the drop everything and change country, it is a moderate size change in my life.
In weird other news, when you find out something about someone and have to assimilate that information into the matrix of information that you have about them… well, I enjoy tormenting people by dropping in new pieces, like my subtle femme tendancies, my cooking, my decorating…. etc. I like the fact that people quite often get to ‘know’ me and then suddenly I drop that new fact in and they’re forced to do a re-evaluation, however small that re-evaluation might be. Well, today, I assimilated some information about someone, which was completely unexpected, prompted by looking at some pictures of her house. And it’s quite interesting, I like it. I like suprise discoveries of talents you didn’t know someone had :-)