What's new?

There is so much stuff going on right now that it's impeding my writing. I'm trying my hand at so many different things, but as usual, I can't settle on one. The summer is finally here so I'm trying to make the best of it. Grilling as much as I can. Spending a lot of time outside. I want to go in several different directions but would like to focus on one or on all, not sure.


The writing was my first outlet earlier in the year. For those that have been keeping up with my blog I have several projects in the works. I'm writing my dad's biography. I'm also writing The Protectors and considering parlaying that into an e-book. This blog has also been put on hold. I would write more, but my life has become mundane lately. There has really been no drama to write about. There are some things that I choose not to write about because it involves other people and their lives. I've learned my lesson when writing about family. I've said my piece but had to leave all that alone.

My other new thing is the vintage toy obsession. From last Thursday until this past Monday I've been to the thrift store or a yard sale every single day. I purchased about a hundred bucks in toys. I bought everything from 80's sesame street toys to 60's board games. I even bought my daughter two baseball gloves. On Monday, which was 50% off day, I stopped by the good old Value Village to look for a Thigh Master "for a friend" and ended up buying a vintage Little Learners cash register. I wasn't planning on buying anything, but watching everyone losing their minds, inspired me to look for something to buy. I noticed mostly everything on the top shelves, which is usually overpriced, was taken. I also checked behind the counter where they keep other valuable items. That is when I saw it. It was red and looked like one those old time registers. All pressed steel with the pop up buttons with amounts on them. A large button that reads PUSH opens the drawer and rings a bell when pressed. I also liked that it had price tabs that pop up in the window when you press a price button. I had been looking for a restoration project. I knew this would be the one.

That same day I went a friends BBQ. The last time I was there I noticed his mom had a bunch of old vases piled up in the corner. The first time I picked out a jar and some vases to ask his mom for, but I forgot. This time I noticed they were still there. I asked his mom about them. I intended to buy the four pieces I had put aside. She told me I could have them all, and the wagon too. Wagon? I hadn't realized that the vases were piled in a wooden Radio Flyer wagon with red rails. I quickly placed the wagonful into the back of my truck. After bringing it home I realized the other then the bottom of the wagon, which was rotted, the wagon was in good shape. I decided that I needed to also restore the wagon. I visualized it with a new stained bottom and shiny new red paint on the rails. As of this afternoon, my father and I had replaced the plywood in the bottom of the wagon. Now it's reassembled and ready to be stained. Tomorrow we will also paint the rails. Aside from the wagon, I researched the jar I picked out and found it was made by the Hoosier Company of Indiana and is vintage. I will be keepng that n my personal collection.

While we worked on the wagon, I was soaking the outer shell of the cash register in a corrosive solution to remove years of rust and paint. A few days ago I started taking the register apart. I  noticed early that it had no screws. Instead it had tabs that poked threw small slots and were either bent or twisted to hold the armature together. I managed to get the 3 major parts separated. I then had to figure out how to remove the keys. They were on the pretty tight. I eventually figured out how to pop them out with a pointed tool hit by a hammer. There was one more key to remove. The PUSH ke remained, but the button could not be removed. My father realized that the PUSH key had to be dislodged from inside. Once I had all parts separated I started doing research on how to remove all the rust and paint. I read an article that suggested using Muriatic Acid. It is a corrosive solution that is used to clean pools, welding, and cleaning stonework. It is very poisonous and will etch concrete. I read that if you dilute it in water, using a large tote or a bucket, you can submerge the whole toy into the solution and clean it all at once.

Now I have some serious thinking to do. How do i manage to juggle all these different hobbies and continue to enjoy them all? I want to be able to do these things and also make time to run. I'm even considering creating a website to sell some of my vintage toys. I also want to sell restored toys. There are so many ideas running through my mind about the website.

There is one more thing that need to say. This is for you and your little friend too. When I saw you do what  you did the other day, my body went cold, and I though I was losing my mind. Then you did again and again. I'm no one to tell you how to live your life. I do however know that shit is no joke and nothing to be played with. I'm sad to think how far this will go. I just hope that you will make the right decision and put that shit down. I'll always have your back, but don't want to see you ruin your life. I don't want to wait till it's too late to say what's in my heart. I'm just saying.