Evolution of a cloud.

I went out to the Great Salt Lake to capture tonight’s sunset.  It wasn’t as spectacular as I had hoped, but there was one cloud that fascinated me.

Thematic Photographic 288

I know, I’ve been absent from this group for a while, but this week’s theme of “Logos” was perfect for a picture I took this week.

Yesterday it snowed pretty good here, so I decided to take a drive up Big Cottonwood Canyon.  There was a couple inches of snow on the road and the “chains or 4-wheel drive” lights were flashing, so it was fun 4-wheel driving up and down the canyon.

I got that picture when I pulled off the road to get some pictures and noticed the Jeep logo (name) in the snow hanging onto the grille.  I knew I couldn’t preserve the snow itself, but catching a picture was going to have to do.

To see more logos and find out what Thematic Photographic is all about, click on the word logo anywhere in this post.

Domicile Colonoscopy.

My house had a colonoscopy tonight.

Well, what else would you call it when some professional runs a camera down the poop chute looking for unwanted growths.  So what if it’s the sewer line and the growths are tree roots?

The good news is that my pipes look pretty good.  Almost all the roots were hair sized and just growing through the joints.  No damage.  So, it looks like I’m not going to have to do the $9,000 replacement, he just got out his other machine and cut out most of the roots.  He’ll be coming back later in the week to treat the lines with root killer, and he says that if I kill the roots every 2 years or so I should be fine for years to come.

The only thing I find weird is that the camera has a microphone.  I mean, what would you have to listen to down a sewer line?

Oy Vey!

For the last 2 days I’ve been without a bathroom.  Thursday morning I flushed the toilet and it backed up into the tub.

Friday I went through a ton of Liquid Plumber and then bought a drain snake and tried to snake out the drain.  To no avail.

Today the plumber came and cleared it out.  For a while at least, because I have roots growing into the sewer line that goes right under the house.

Monday or Tuesday he’s coming back with his drain camera to see how bad the damage is.

Best case scenario, which he says has a 75% chance, is that they can salvage the pipes and just power flush and root kill the drains.  Cost: $1,500.

Worst case scenario is the pipes are not salvageable and they’ll have to break up the concrete in the basement and replace the pipes.  Estimated cost: $9,000.  Right now, I wish I was a renter.

If I ever needed to inherit some money from a long-lost relative, this is the time.

In a week.

Well, it’s been over a week since I picked up the Jeep and I’ve been loving it.

The T-top roof is great, especially in this sunny and warm one day, cold and rainy the next weather.  It’s got as much power as the old one, cruises a lot smoother on the freeway and (so far) averages 22% better gas mileage.

I have to say, though, that the definition of “stripped model” has change considerably over the last 35 years.

In 1979 I bought a brand new Mazda GLC (grandpappy to the Mazda 3).  At the time I was amazed that the rear window defrogger was standard, and I did pay extra for the roof rack.  Other than that it was basic.  Steering wheel, 4-speed transmission, 4 doors and an engine.

My Jeep is the basic model.  The only options I have on it are the hard-top and air conditioning.  I was amazed because they are hard to find, but it came with manual windows and manual door locks (same as the Mazda).

But this stripped model includes cruise control, ABS, intermittent wipers, locking glove box and center console, rear wiper, vanity mirrors on both visors, control center (avg MPG, outside temp, direction {N,S,E,W}, miles to empty, change oil warning), 6 speaker stereo with controls on the steering wheel, 6 speed manual transmission, and a full sized spare tire.  That last one was standard in 1979, but rarely seen these days.

Then again, the Mazda cost me $4,500 – the Jeep cost 5 times as much.

So on Sunday my brothers and I went out to Stansbury Island for some 4-wheeling.  I got the Jeep a little muddy and went up the side of the hill.

Today I took the top off.  Spring break and today and tomorrow are the only 2 days in a row that it isn’t going to rain, so I just had to.

I went out to the Great Salt Lake to get these pictures.  It was a little chilly with the top off, but it still was great.

Oh, and here’s a cow that found our hike on Stansbury Island quite fascinating.

⁰IIIIIII⁰