What might be making you a tad apprehensive, but might not, as it's too soon to tell

[Pete Zicato]

Originally Posted by Clodfobble

At the end of the year, each grade does a little performance program. A hundred-plus first graders, only ten speaking parts, and somehow they gave one of the largest parts to Minifob.

Have they had practices yet? How's he doing?

[Lamplighter]

S0me^Dwe11ars^may^remember^my^specia1^c0ffee^cup
I^just^spi11ed^sugared^c0ffee^int0^my^keyb0ard

Then^whi1e^turning^the^keyb0ard^upside^d0wn^t0^drain,
^I^kn0cked^the^cup^0ver^again^and^spi11ed^the^
rest^0f^the^c0ffee^0nt0^my^m0use^and^br0ke^the^cup

The^m0use^seems^t0^be^w0rking^again
Maybe^the^keys^0n^the^right^side^wi11^start^w0rking
again^t0mmar0w

1^^f0r^my^10st^c0ffee
2^^f0r^my^specia1^cup

[Clodfobble]

Originally Posted by Pete Zicato

Have they had practices yet? How's he doing?

He knows his lines when we practice at home, at least. (And he always makes me read past his last line to the end of the scene, because he has a stage direction to smile and wave, and he wants to be sure to practice that part too. ) But the memorization's the easy part. We'll see...

[limey]

Lamp I spilled coffee (just a couple of drops) onto my keyboard and at first it wouldn't stop peeing (well, they do say coffee is a diuretic!). Then it wouldn't pee at all.
I gave up and got a new one.

[glatt]

I've read that you can put a keyboard into the dishwasher on the top rack and it can clean them without harming them. I've never tried it though. Sounds totally wrong.

[infinite monkey]

Originally Posted by Lamplighter

S0me^Dwe11ars^may^remember^my^specia1^c0ffee^cup
I^just^spi11ed^sugared^c0ffee^int0^my^keyb0ard

Then^whi1e^turning^the^keyb0ard^upside^d0wn^t0^drain,
^I^kn0cked^the^cup^0ver^again^and^spi11ed^the^
rest^0f^the^c0ffee^0nt0^my^m0use^and^br0ke^the^cup

The^m0use^seems^t0^be^w0rking^again
Maybe^the^keys^0n^the^right^side^wi11^start^w0rking
again^t0mmar0w

1^^f0r^my^10st^c0ffee
2^^f0r^my^specia1^cup

I AM sorry about ur coffee cup.

I had a great coffee cup that one of the older ladies in the farm market gave me one summer to take back to college.

I didn't find out until years later, at my last job, that it was Bybee pottery, kind of a big deal. I had carried my cup o' over to the bookstore and the lady says 'is that bybee?' and I'm all like "I don't know. What?" and we turned it over and it had this insignia on the bottom. Well, we didn't turn it over we held it up and looked underneath.




When they renovated the suite one of the workers knocked it off the shelf and broke it to pieces. Poor kid, he left me a note and everything. But there was nothing to be done. It was sentimental to me because of who gave it to me, but these things happen.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Originally Posted by glatt

I've read that you can put a keyboard into the dishwasher on the top rack and it can clean them without harming them. I've never tried it though. Sounds totally wrong.

This guy did it.

Three days later, with no evidence of any remaining dampness on the keyboard, I plugged it into an Apple laptop. The Mac OS X keyboard-setup assistant automatically popped up... but then nothing happened. I pressed the "z" key as it instructed, but the computer never registered that input. Much the same thing happened on a Lenovo netbook running Windows XP: The computer realized that there was a keyboard on the other end of that USB cable but didn't detect any keystrokes.

Update: It seems I typed, or tried to type, too soon. Last night, after a day of baking in the same sunny room, the keyboard came to life when I plugged it into each of those two laptops. All of the keys appear to work properly, and the Caps Lock and Num Lock LEDs even illuminate. (Yes, the keyboard did function before; it was just too disgusting for my colleague to want to keep using, and somebody in IT decided it would be simpler to swap it out for a new unit.) So that seems to be the trick--letting the keyboard dry for what seems like enough time, then give it another day or two to air out.

[limey]

It was cheaper to buy a new keyboard than a dishwasher ...

[Pete Zicato]

Originally Posted by glatt

I've read that you can put a keyboard into the dishwasher on the top rack and it can clean them without harming them. I've never tried it though. Sounds totally wrong.

All the crumbs that get in my keyboard would probably gum up the dishwasher.

[Ocean's Edge]

I have washed keyboards out - I usually use the spray attachment on the sink, and warm water - NO SOAP! .. and then leave em somewhere warm - top of the fridge fer instance to dry out for a few days to a week.

I've got about a 75% success rate with them surviving the procedure.

There's a reason I won't buy a fancy ergonomic $150 keyboard.

Years of forbidding the children to have food or drink at the computer, means I'm the only one who's dumped a full coffee or a can of coke into the keyboard.

[Lamplighter]

The opitical mouse seems to be working fine.
But that was a $50+ cup of coffee (including a new cup)
Of course, it will take years to attain the same patina.

With nothing to lose now, I'll try the old keyboard in the dishwasher,
and maybe we'll end up with a full-sized keyboard on the iPad

[chrisinhouston]

Today I have to try to finish fixing my wife's car and put it back together. She drives a 1996 Toyota Avalon and it's hovering at 280,000 miles. It began making a noise, kind of a grinding grown that was there until you hit the accelerator and revved it such a when you speed up or get out on the highway. Then it would subside but come back once the engine was at a steady rpm. It is a transverse engine and it sounded like the noise was on the passenger side where the belts are.

After listening to it while idling in the driveway I felt it might be the water pump or one of the big pulleys for the timing belt. We are way overdue for a timing belt change and since the water pump is only replaceable when the belt is removed I am doing replacing it as well which is what Toyota suggests. I suspect it is the water pump bearing making the noise as the shaft might get repositioned to not make the noise when you accelerate and water is forced harder through the impeller blades, sort of refloating the shaft to a centered position and not pushing the bearing off center.

I had to drain out all of the coolant, remove lots of stuff including the air plenum, engine mounts and brackets and today I need to break free the nut holding the big pulley on to the crankshaft. I need to insure that everything is perfectly lined up for cylinder 1 at top dead center or the timing could get off. I ordered the necessary parts, timing belt kit, water pump and several gaskets and they are all here.

So, I am uneasy because I always doubt my skills even though I did the timing belt a few years ago (supposed to be every 90,000 miles but this is only the second time) and I have successfully rebuilt a few engines in my youth. I just worry I will screw it up, something will go wrong or worse yet I will get it done and the noise will still be there meaning it is something else. And the last thing we need is for the car to just not be repairable (something worse or I fuck up), we just don't have room for a new car payment what with the kitchen redo and other things. I will have let my wife down or at least that what my Leo ego will think.

So why am I doing it? Well, having a shop do it would be $600-$800 as for them it's almost an all day job and they mark up parts. I took the car apart last week and ordered the parts, then I cut my thumb so I've waited for it to heel up mostly so I can use it. And the parts I have purchased only cost about $160 so far. I am also changing out the valve cover gaskets as they get old and brittle and let oil seep out.

Can't put it off any longer, it's like a tax return or getting in your thesis on time.

[glatt]

Good luck Chris! You know what you are doing, and that's why you are nervous. Sometimes it's better to be ignorant about the possible problems.

[xoxoxoBruce]

As long as you get #1 at TDC, the worst that could happen is a leaky gasket or something simple that you'd have to redo, along with checking for children within earshot.

Like you said, the noise could be something else. The only other thing might be the alternator, but I'd bet on the water pump too. Besides, what you're doing needs doing anyway so all's good.

Oh, have you checked the radiator fan? Pullers, sometimes when they get worn, start to rub the fins and could slide back under acceleration. Just a thought if this doesn't solve it.

[chrisinhouston]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

Oh, have you checked the radiator fan? Pullers, sometimes when they get worn, start to rub the fins and could slide back under acceleration. Just a thought if this doesn't solve it.

On a regular engine that might be true but for a transverse the fan units are up by the radiator in front and electrically controlled. And the noise is definitely coming from the area facing the right wheel where the belts and pulleys are, it seemed in the center area which could negate it being the alternator which is towards the front.

The issue for me is not so much my ability but working on an older car with a very dirty engine, brittle connections and other plastic parts that break or crumble.

Today I removed the spark plugs as I planned on changing them as well and it is easier to turn over the engine with them out but ran into a glitch. The spark plugs are recessed down little tubes in the center of the cylinder heads and the center rear spark plug cable came off ok but left a little rubber boot way down inside decided to stay on the spark plug making it impossible to remove the plug. So for about an hour I worked by feel (you can't see into the tube as it faces the firewall) with a large hemostat, I figured it was a long and narrow version of a needle nose and I managed to pull bits of the rubber off. Then I resorted to a dental tool with a long curved point and picked out bits of rubber for another hour until the last of it came out. Finally removed the spark plug. It is amazing how many tools I have collected and especially unusual ones like the medical and dental tools

Then it was the valve covers, the front is easy but once again the rear presents all kinds of issue as the wiring harness and an AC line are up against it. Finally got it out.

Now playing with finding TDC for #1 which is on the rear head. I also have to jam something into the ring gear via a transmission access panel to jam the crank in place to break free the crank pulley nut which is supposed to be torqued to 159 ft lbs. I did this once before but can't remember what I did. The Toyoto work book says to use a special tool to hold the pulley in place, I may go to the auto part store and see if they rent out a tool like that.

I am remembering how I swore I would never do this kind of job again. What made me forget that?