This is the only Corgi I have, I couldn't pass it up.
These cars are from the 2008 Hot Wheels Mystery Cars set. I didn't quite find all of them. I accidentally found out that the Batmobile and it got me back in to collecting.
This is a display that an Uncle of mine made for me. The cars are all (except the one in the lower right hand corner) from one set of Matchbox cars (1997?). Yes, I still have all the packages for these.
This is an 40th Anniversary set that Hot Wheels released in 2008 (I think). One car from each of the years.
This 55 gallon rain barrel collects and stores water for watering. I had trouble finding one of these used. I didn't want to pay for a new one, $80 just isn't in my price range. Finally I friend had this lying around in his woods so he gave it to me. I can't really beat free.
There was some patching required, notably almost the entire base was cut out and in the top was missing it's screw in plug. To fix the missing plug I used a disc cut from a plastic paint can lid on each side and silicone gel to hold it all together.
The large square hole is covered with netting to keep out mosquitoes and debris.
Here's the current setup. The gutter system captures less than a quarter of my roof area but even an inch of rain fills the barrel. I think I have space to add an additional barrel if I could find one on the cheap.
| Item | Date |
| iPod 4G (20Gb) | 03/10/05 |
| Xboxes + Games 5 (five) & 12 month Live subscription & Wireless Controller & Watch | March-Aug, 2004 |
| Cybikos 2 (two) | May 2001 |
| Sum 41 CD (single) (2) & Sunglasses | June-July, 2001 |
| Leather Jacket & 2 sets of Kick Sacks | Summer 1996 |
| Pepsi Hoody | Summer 1997 |
| 400 Mhz PC | 02/23/05 |
| Pill Counter | Feb?, 2002 |
| Palm Pilot | Spring 2002 |
| Halo big box | September? 2004 |
| Halo 2 big Box | December 2004 |
| iTunes songs (~225) | Spring 2004 |
| Panthers Cap | Winter 2003-04 |
| Kellogg Jean Jacket, four | Fall 1996 |
| Tent, Belt Clip Watch (2), Survival Light Radio, Camping Lamp, Sweat Jacket, Neck Radio, Picnic Blanket, Workout Bag, B&W TV (3), T-Shirt, tool Bag with tools, Tool Kit | Summer 2001-Summer 2004 |
| IPod Shuffle (512Mb) | 03/24/05 |
| AirPort Express | 04/29/05 |
| JBL Creature II Speaker set | 04/29/05 |
| Windows XP Professional | Early Spring 2002 |
| $25.00 (McDonalds Olymics giveaways) | Summer 1996 |
This list does not include various free movie showings.
I determined that I would use a computer with an I-PAC. I purchased a video card for the computer that would allow me to use the monitor that came with the cabinet, however I was not able to get them working together. I ended up using a slightly larger computer monitor as the display and the original video card.
After removing the original game board and power supply a few modifications were required. First the board in the back of the cabinet had to be cut to allow the computer to be placed inside.
With a ton of help from Matt all of the original buttons were mapped to the I-PAC.
As I said, I had to replace the original display with a computer monitor. The monitor on hand was too big for the cabinet and some changes were made. First it had to be placed in upside down, in addition sime of the plastic of the monitor had to be removed. Also, the plastic matte around the display had to be trimmed to display the entire screen. The monitor also extends past the rear of the cabinet so a notch will need to be cut from the access board to allow it to close.
A power strip was added to the cabinet and plugged into the original power block so that the existing power switch could be used to turn the cabinet on and off.
I have always loved video games. They have been my spare times passion for over 15 years. Most of my experience has been with console games, and that is great. However, some of my favorite memories are of playing Galaga. There isn't a stand up Galaga cabinet near by so I could only get my Galaga fix with an emulator. As fun as that is, a keyboard just doesn't cut it.
The dream of owning a Galaga cabinet would fill my mind any time I played the game. Finding one has been a little difficult, and when I do they are too expensive.
Recently I went to an Arcade Machine Auction in Winston Salem with a friend of mine. There were several Galaga cabinets available but they sold for way too much. So I began to toss around the idea of building a MAME cabinet. I would need an inexpensive box to put it in so, I kept my eye out for one.
Towards the end of the day an X-Men vs. Street Fighter was auctioned. for the auction the cabinet was plugged in but it didn't turn on. this was okay with me because I didn't need it to work. Nobody bid on it an I was able to get it for $20. Which is good even for an empty cabinet.
It turns out the cabinet was in perfect working order, nobody thought to flip the switch on. The monitor didn't have any burn-in whatsoever. All the controls worked and the sound quality was awesome. There are a few cosmetic problems, most notably a large chunk of wood missing from the left side. This was easily fixed by some wood filler.
I now had a dilemma. Should I keep my new found deal as an X-Men vs. Street Fighter cabinet or replace it with MAME. I do really like XMvsSF but, I wanted to play Galaga. I decided that I would do both.
When I left my last company they gave me the second of my two weeks off with pay so I used it to dig this plot.
I used four 7' landscape logs to border the garden; I notched the ends of each and drilled a hole so that I could drive a nail through them to hold the corners in place. The next thing I did was probably over kill. To inhibit weed growth while waiting for spring I dug foot wide sections of the yard about 18″ deep and turned them upside down in place. To help get the clay of my yard ready for planting I buried some items destined for the compost pile a few inches deep.
Currently the plot is covered with christmas trees to keep the soil somewhat warm and hopefully also help keep weeds from growing. When it comes time to till I will mix in some pine needles and fresh soil.
Concerns:
The location of this plot is adjacent to the lowest spot in the yard. I am afraid that this will cause the roots to rot. My hope is that the summer months will be hot enough to prevent the soil from staying soggy.
Here is the current view.
I filled in cracks between the bricks with clay hoping that it will keep anything from ever growing between them, ever. It worked fairly well.
