11 May 2010

Ethan's Sweet Remote Control Tank

Ethan, a 13-year-old boy Alexandria and I mentor, designed a tank. We were looking for a project to keep us busy without having to find a new activity each week. With his input and help, I built this tank for him. It uses a tethered remote for control and weighs a little over 42 lbs. It is welded from 1/8" steel plate and is very robust. It  literally shakes the ground when on concrete. I finished the mechanical part last week and on Saturday we painted it. Then I finished the wiring. By that time the batteries were running low, so I charged it for a day. These batteries are massive compared to most RC batteries and I am trying to charge them with a 330 mA wall adapter. Its working, but slowly. A car battery charger would work better. As heavy as it is, it definitely moves. Check it out!


































The batteries and motors












Ethan's dad joined us to paint it.

















If you want to see other big stuff I've made:

01 May 2010

I got a DOG!!!

So...

Yesterday I went to Petco (it was actually Petsmart) in Orem because that is what I do when I'm craving animals.  Because it was not Saturday, I did not expect there to be dogs at the store (C.A.W.S brings in dogs to have adoptions on Saturdays and I go...a lot).  My plan was to hold some cats and maybe a few rodents, then migrate to Ross and think about buying a purse suitable to hold both work stuff and clothing for a trip to the gym on my way home.  However, I got distracted when I fell in LOVE with this:
I began playing with her and she was PERFECT!!!  She's mid-sized, energetic, and about 8 months old.  She's great with other dogs.  Also, the animal shelter she came from puts dogs down...a lot.  They informed me that I couldn't just wait 3 months if I wanted her alive and mine.  I called Jeremy and he came by to see.  I told him of my plan along with the details of where I would have her stay...us not being allowed dogs in our apartment and all...and he responded with, "I'm going to leave.  Make a good decision."  I informed him that if he left, I was buying the dog.  He said "I know," and that was that.

We have a dog!!!

Her name is Bridget.  She is currently staying in Jeremy's wonderfully kind grandparents' backyard with their two other dogs.  She is fitting in just perfectly and loves having friends.  George, a 6-year-old male dog who turned out not to be neutered, loves having her there.  Maybe too much...  But it's working out.

I took her today to get her rabies vaccination and to get her licensed.  She was great in the car and stayed and waited for me when I ran a few errands later on.  She didn't destroy anything and was super excited to see me when I came back.  I took her on a run/walk afterward.  I bought a "gentle leader" for training and walking purposes, but she really doesn't pull.  She still has lots of command-learning to do, but we love her already.

The owner came by and popped his head in today randomly.  He's never done that.  Of course, it was when I was in the shower and Jeremy was holding the dog.  We're not ALLOWED to have dogs.  He thought our apartment was the vacant one, as two couples have just moved out of our building, and he wanted to fix the refrigerator (which isn't broken...).  WHOOPS!  I called him after I was done cleansing myself and explained that Bridget wasn't actually living here.  He said that was perfectly fine that she had temporarily visited and thanked me for letting him know.  So we're good.

To further our adventure, we introduced Bridget to the rats.  They sniffed each other curiously and were just fine.  Flower didn't even get scared.  Later on we introduced her to Sam and Michelle.  They didn't get scared either, but Michelle did get very excited :)  It made me happy. 
I think she will be a great dog for our family.  We're both super excited and very grateful to the Dison grandparents for taking care of our baby for a few months.  I'll be glad when we move someplace we can actually have her.
Just in case you needed proof:
Alexandria + Dog = Happy

also...
Happy Alexandria = Happy Jeremy = Happy Family