Tag: postaday

Gleaming Spokes and Rebuilding a Wheel

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X-E4, 18mm, f/4.5, 1/100 sec, ISO640
 “Gleaming Spokes” Cedar Park, 2021

The restoration of my Peugeot UJ-10 bicycle took a big leap today because I replaced the old rusty spokes on the front wheel with brand new DT Swiss 260 mm spokes. These are stronger and shiny. So not only is it safer, but the spokes are beautiful!

This was my first time rebuilding a wheel and lacing spokes, but with the help of this video, it was easy and actually a lot of fun!

I’m looking forward to replacing the spokes on the rear wheel next, but I am delaying starting that project because it would mean the bike would be out of service while I wait for parts. I can’t just order spokes (and hub bearings) beforehand because I need to remove them from the bicycle to measure them and ensure I order the correct parts. And I am having too much fun riding the neighborhood with Sophie right now, so I’ll wait on the repair a bit.

I’m so happy with my Peugeot project. It’s so much fun and I am learning so much about bicycles!

Photo info: FUJIFILM X-E4, 18mm, f/4.5, 1/100 sec, ISO640
 “Sophie Silhouette” Cedar Park, 2021

Salvadorian Chicken Dinner

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X-E4, 55mm, f/4.5, 1/140 sec, ISO3200
 “Salvadorian Chicken” Cedar Park, 2021

I was reorganizing my browser’s bookmarks and came across this recipe for Salvadorian Chicken which I hadn’t made in a few years so I decided to make it for dinner. It’s a braised chicken in wine dish, and very easy to make.

I don’t really know how authentic it is, but it’s pretty tasty! I usually like very flavorful and spicy dishes, and this dish would be considered quite tame. Probably perfect for those with less-adventurous palettes.

Outdoor Lights Refresh

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X-E4, 27mm, f/4, 1/100 sec, ISO1600
 “Lighting” Cedar Park, 2021

Last year we put up a string of lights on our deck just outside our dinner/breakfast room and it made the space so nice to look at. But recently, the cord broke, and also our fancy remote-controlled power outlet stopped working. Remedying both situations was pretty easy (and cheap).

For the broken cord, all it took was my pair of wire cutters (like these) and electrical tape to reconnect the wires.

Instead of replacing the broken remote-controlled outlet (which lasted a year), I bought an inexpensive lightbulb socket outlet adapter. We have an exterior light that is rarely used because it’s positioned badly for providing light on the deck. However, it’s in the perfect location for plugging in the string lights. So now the light switch next to our dinner table light switch turns on the string lights. What a simple solution that I am ashamed I didn’t think of last year.

Now we can enjoy the deck lighting once again.

Learning the Oven

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X-E4, 27mm, f/4, 1/45 sec, ISO3200
 “Anova Oven” Cedar Park, 2021

It’s weird to think that one would have to learn how to use a home oven, but here we are. Welcome to the 2020s! I touched on it briefly in another post, but we have a fancy Anova Precision Oven which has a sous vide mode. It basically uses a water reservoir to regulate the moisture level in the oven as you cook food. This cooks the food evenly and also keeps it from drying out. The addition of a food probe ensures even more precision as the food reaches and is held at the proper temperature depending on the recipe.

It’s a fancy bit of technology for sure, but is it too much? Mariko tasked me to try some recipes for the oven, so I’ll have a better answer in the coming weeks but what I do know is that it’s actually fun to use because you can control the oven with an app on your phone. If you use one of the recipes from the Anova website, the oven changes modes automatically (varying moisture level, temperature, heat source direction, and probe control) during the cooking process. It’s very satisfying to glance at your phone and see the status of the oven.

So far I have prepared a pork tenderloin, which came out pretty good, and today I tried the “Reheat Pizza” recipe, which also was a success. I admit that this oven is overkill for two slices of pizza, but I had to test it out! 😂