Digital Fur

This morning I changed my Google home page theme. I’ve had Coldplay “Viva La Vida” as my theme since early this past summer and it just starting getting old. I opted for the new “theme of the day” selection knowing each new morning I’ll have a little surprise to look forward to.

As soon as I clicked “add this theme” my new iGoogle page was redesigned by Dolce & Gabbana… out with the Coldplay, in with the leopard skin. Imagine that- a fancy European designer yet again exploiting animals for profit.

It looks interesting, and though I don’t like it much I know it will be gone tomorrow. What I’m wondering though is this… how do extremist animal rights people view digital animal products?

I’ve seen leather texture files for designers, and of course all kinds of other images online. I did an image search on Google (“animal skin textures”) and got over 200K pages. What is a radical to do?

I see a whole new fundraising angle for PETA here. Imagine, hiring Chinese or Russian hackers to use Photoshop and airbrush blood on various image files at photobucket.com, shutterstock.com or istockphoto.com. Keeping tabs on celebrity blogs and sites and launching huge protests if Lindsay Lohan or Rosie O'Donnell use a zebra skin border on their blog. They can place banner ads on various sites and seek donations to help stop the gratuitous use of animals on the internet and in print. Let the cash continue to roll for PETA folks!

We Are Now Dog People

I grew up with dogs my whole life. I can barely remember the ones from my early years- Chocolate (killed by a neighbor with a shotgun when he messed in his yard once too often), Smoky, a Dalmatian, and then Daisy. Our cute cocka-poo.

She was followed by Ringo that on well beyond the time I moved out from home.

And that was it, for more than 20 years, until a few weeks ago.




We have a tradition where each of our girls gets to choose their heart’s desire for their 13th birthday gift (you can read more about that here), and L chose a dog. We spent several months thinking about the breed to get and finally found a cute Yorkshire Terrier pup.



I fought it off for along time… fearing the dog-smell and inevitable messes around the house, but I finally gave in.

Our new little girl, Bella, has already found a place in all of our hearts, despite her insistence to not use the facilities outside.

One Of The Many Reasons I Despise Government

Check out this lame story:

City To Cut Back On Plowing Snow On Side Streets
CHICAGO (CBS) ― Mayor Richard M. Daley said Tuesday that city crews will cut back on plowing side streets this winter in an effort to save money. The mayor said the city will only plow side streets during weekday union business hours this winter, rather than during overtime hours

But as CBS 2's Derrick Blakley reports if there's one city service Chicagoans demand, it's outstanding snow removal.

"I expect for the streets to be cleaned for my tax money," said Chicago resident Sarah Lockhart.

"That's the kind of spending we need to maintain," said Chicago resident Madeline Norris.

"That's not an area I'd like to see services get cut in because it would affect a lot of people," said Chicago resident Howard Williams.

Despicable. This government blackmail is becoming more and more common. Find the essential services the community relies on and limit or cut back on the service, crying poor all along the way and whining about needing more tax dollars. All the while, spending away on non-essential services (and new government cars, desks, office improvements, Barack Obama’s multi-million dollar block party in Chicago, pay raises, extra vacation days and new Blackberry’s for the whole government office gang).

Imagine how this would go down at home:

My wife calling me on my new iPhone while cruising in the 2009 F-150 truck I just bought headed to a Titans game, club level, with the flatbed packed with steaks and imported beer for the big pre-game tailgate party:
“Hi sweetie. I’m at Kohl’s with the girls and wondering if we have enough money in the checking account to get a new jacket. Little Sally’s winter coat from last year is too small."

Me, responding to my wife in Kohls:
"Honey- things are real tight right now. When I checked Quicken this morning I noticed we were over budget on clothes. I think you should hold off for a month or two, and also you might want to cut out your weekly lunch with your friends. We should build up enough in the clothes budget to maybe get her a light jacket by March or so."

It’s A Small Internet After All

I’ve never been a big believer in coincidences. The world is just too vast, and the chances of any one thing happening or not happening at a certain time too many. When something aligns, or a chance encounter or random thought enters the mind, I really believe it means something. There’s some prompter or power at work.

I was taught at an early age that if an old friend or a family member comes to mind during the day, stop and take a moment to pray for them. Appreciate what they mean to you, and even reach out to them if you can (quick email, text or even a Facebook poke).

That worked the other way around just recently. A bizarre thing happened last week. I got an email from a guy named John who contacted me after visiting this blog and seeing my profile picture:

From: John
Sent: Thursday, November 27, 2008 11:35 PM
Subject: you look familiar

Young man, your picture on your blog reminds me of an old USAF buddy from Brooklyn. But, that was back in the early 1960's. I haven't seen Richard and his wife, Marilyn since August 1970.

Happy Thanksgiving.

John

Well- my dad’s name is Richard, he was indeed in the Air Force, and his wife, my mom, is named Marilyn. And the time frame fit. Wacky.

I forwarded the email to my dad and he confirmed he knew John. The next step for me was to find out how John found my blog and recognized by picture:

From: DigitalRich
Sent: Sunday, November 30, 2008 9:06 AM
To: John
Subject: RE: you look familiar

Hello John. You found the right guy. My dad is Richard and his wife is Marilyn. I sent your message to him and he confirmed he knows you. I’d be very interested to know if this was a total coincidence and how you found my blog and recognized me as looking like my dad. Did you just stumble on the blog, or did you search for my dad and find my blog? Please let me know!

Rich

And his response blew my mind…

From: John
Sent: Sunday, November 30, 2008 7:47 PM
To: DigitalRich
Subject: RE: you look familiar

Rich:

I've been working 12 hour night shifts over the four day holiday and was getting bored because all work activity in the three state area that I control natural gas was non-existent. Soooooo. I was digging around for music to stream on the internet and started with http://www.tropicalglen.com/ and http://www.theradio.com/. The older music started me thinking about my early days in USAF and one of my good friends, your dad knows him, Sonny Jackson, used to like gospel (he hailed from Alabama - Georgia border. Somehow I ran across a site that had some DVD’s for sale for child protection sponsored by John Walsh. John's son was kidnapped from the Hollywood Mall in Fl about 5 miles from where I lived after the Air Force, so this caught my eye. I was just surfing and all of a sudden, the past is looking me in the eye. You look a lot like your Dad, your uncle, and your grandfather as well as I can remember. Your mom is in the mix too.

Where are you? California? Tell your dad that Terry and Mary Ann Lambert just sent me a post card. They visited the duplex that they and your parents used to live in right after they were married in Naranja, FL.

God Bless and have a wonderful holiday season.

John

Unbelievable. In 2006 I worked for John Walsh (of America’s Most Wanted fame) and helped him and Julie Clark (Baby Einstein Founder) launch a kids safety video company. I wrote a few posts about child safety and those got dinged by John’s Google search… he then visited my blog and saw my photo without knowing my name.

How crazy is that?

How To Build A Willow Tree Crèche

Well… it’s not a perfect replica of the famous (and pricey) Willow Tree Crèche, but it will certainly do as a great inexpensive backdrop to your Willow Tree Nativity set or any other nativity set in need of a rustic looking stable.

I actually think my version is better for a couple reasons: 1) It's larger, providing more space for various characters. 2) It's cheaper!

I’m posting this because I’ve noticed a good amount of traffic hitting here from Google searches with the search terms WILLOW TREE CRECHE BUILD. Last year I wrote a post about the crèche I built for my wife Michelle (Project Crèche Complete!). I didn’t give any detailed instructions or show photo’s, so I figured I’d do it this year in hopes of helping anyone that needs it to avoid the $75-100 cost plus S&H and build their own for up to 90% less.

First I should give you the bad news and good news. The bad news I’ve already mentioned- its not exactly a Willow Tree Crèche. The good news? It’s EASY to make and very inexpensive. I don’t have much experience in woodworking- this was only my 4th or 5th project. It cost a grand total of $30 and I got enough material to make 3 Crèches (so far I’ve made one for us and one for my mother-in-law).

Here are the detailed instructions:

Using any kind of wood you like (I used pine- cheap and easy to work with) create a base, backstop, platform, backdrop, crossbeam and Roof. Read through the instructions below carefully to make sure you get enough wood and other materials to complete the project.

BASE. This is the foundation of the crèche where all the remaining pieces (and the nativity set) rest upon.

1. Cut a piece of wood to the following measurements: 20” wide, 10” deep and ¾” high (fairly standard height for a plank of pine from Home Depot or Lowes).

2. Using a miter saw (or miter angle on your table saw) cut the length of the front of the BASE at a 45 degree angle.

3. Sand all edges and surfaces until smooth, especially the front sharp angle resulting from the 45 degree cut- I sliced my finger pretty badly on my first crèche.

4. Stain all surfaces except the bottom to desired color (SEE NOTE ON STAINING AT THE BOTTOM).

BACKSTOP. This is a lip at the back of the BASE that creates a slightly raised line along the width. I actually didn’t have to create this since the BASE I used was a discarded shelf that had this lip/backstop already on it.

1. Cut a piece of wood to the following measurements: 20” wide, ¾” deep and 1 1/8” high.

2. Fasten along the back of the BASE with nails ensuring smooth edges matching the bottom and two sides of the BASE.

3. Drill two ¼” holes, all the way through the BACKSTOP, for dowels (make sure you’re drilling down into the 1 1/8” height), 7” from each end.

4. Sand all edges and surfaces until smooth.

5. Stain all surfaces to desired color (SEE NOTE ON STAINING AT THE BOTTOM).

PLATFORM. This is similar to the BASE, but smaller and rests on top of the BASE providing a higher elevation to lift up the main nativity set characters.

1. Cut a piece of wood to the following measurements: 10 ¼” wide, 8 ¾” deep and ¾” high.

2. Using a miter saw (or miter angle on your table saw) cut the length of the front of the PLATFORM at a 45 degree angle (just like you did for the BASE).

3. Sand all edges and surfaces until smooth, especially the front sharp angle resulting from the 45 degree cut.

4. Stain all surfaces to desired color (SEE NOTE ON STAINING AT THE BOTTOM).

BACKDROP. The all important back of the stable creating the backdrop for the amazing scene of the birth of Jesus. There are actually 7 pieces to the BACKDROP- backdrop base, backdrop lip, beadboard paneling, 2 columns and 2 dowels. NOTE- It is important to have the BACKDROP be able to disconnect from the BASE and FOUNDATION to make it easy to store the Crèche flat during the year, so don't glue or affix the final BACKDROP to the BASE beyond just dropping the BACKDROP dowels into the holes in the BACKDROP/BACKSTOP. This will make more sense after you watch the video at the end.

Backdrop Base
1. Cut a piece of wood to the following measurements: 10 ¾” wide, ¾” deep and 10 ¾” high/tall.

2. Drill two ¼” holes, about 1” deep, for dowels on the bottom of the BACKDROP, 2 ½” from each end of the edges. IMPORTANT- prior to drilling holes, make sure the hole placements will match up with the dowel holes drilled into the BACKSTOP.

3. Sand all edges and surfaces until smooth.

4. Stain just the two outside edges, left and right, to desired color (SEE NOTE ON STAINING AT THE BOTTOM).

Backdrop Lip
1. This is similar to the BACKSTOP created for the BASE except it will be sitting on it’s side as compared to the BACKSTOP, creating a lip sticking out towards the front of the crèche.

2. Cut a piece of wood to the following measurements: 10 ¾” wide, 1 1/8” deep and ¾” high. Fasten along the back of the BASE with nails ensuring smooth edges matching the bottom and two sides of the BASE.

3. Sand all edges and surfaces until smooth.

4. Stain all surfaces to desired color (SEE NOTE ON STAINING AT THE BOTTOM).

Beadboard Paneling
1. Using light wood beadboard paneling (found at Home Depot or Lowes) cut a piece to the following measurements: 7 ¾” wide, 9 5/12” high.

2. Sand the outside edges (but not the front surface) until smooth.

3. Stain just the front surface to desired color (SEE NOTE ON STAINING AT THE BOTTOM).

Columns (make 2 of exactly the same piece below)
1. Cut a piece of wood to the following measurements: 1 ½” wide, ¾” deep and 9 5/12” high.

2. Sand all edges and surfaces until smooth.

3. Stain all surfaces to desired color (SEE NOTE ON STAINING AT THE BOTTOM).

Dowels (make/use 2 of exactly the same piece below)
1. Cut a ¼” wide dowel to 2” long.

ASSEMBLING BACKDROP. Now that you have the 7 pieces comprising the BACKDROP, you’ll assemble them into a single piece:

1. Lay the Backdrop Base down on it’s back and arrange the 2 columns (on the two opposites sides) and beadboard paneling (in between the columns) to ensure they tuck smoothly under the Backdrop Lip, are flush to the Backdrop Base sides.

2. Sand or trim cut to fit if it’s not. NOTE- there will be a gap below the columns and beadboard paneling where the Backdrop Base will be showing.

3. Place the PLATFORM on top of the BASE. While holding the Backdrop Base together with the columns and beadboard in place, ensure the assembled piece will sit flush on top of the BASE, BACKSTOP and PLATFORM. Sand or trim cut if necessary.

4. Using wood glue, glue the 2 columns and beadboard paneling in place to the Backdrop Base. Let dry.

5. Glue or fasten firmly the two 2” dowels into the holes in the Backdrop Base.

CROSSBEAM. A simple strip of wood that will sit on top of the BACKDROP (resting also on the two columns) providing some additional depth to the BACKDROP.

1. Cut a piece of wood to the following measurements: 12 ½” wide, ½” deep and ¾” high.

2. Sand all edges and surfaces until smooth.

3. Stain all surfaces to desired color (SEE NOTE ON STAINING AT THE BOTTOM).

ROOF. You’re almost done! These are the last two pieces. Two simple pieces of wood that will lean together (or you can glue/fasten them) creating an illusion of a roof.

1. Make 2 of exactly the same pieces.

2. Cut a piece of wood to the following measurements: 7 ½” long, ¾” wide and 1 ½” high.
Using a miter saw (or miter angle on your table saw) cut a 45 degree angle on both ends creating a trapezoid.

3. Sand all edges and surfaces until smooth. Ensure the two pieces lean together and balance/stand.

4. Stain all surfaces to desired color (SEE NOTE ON STAINING AT THE BOTTOM).

5. If you prefer, you can affix the two roof pieces together with glue or a framing nail. I didn’t connect them and just lean them together on the final crèche. While they fall down easily if the crèche is bumped, this is a delicate connection and for ease of storage its better not to affix them.

STAINING. This was actually the one part that I was most afraid of. Sure, I can paint- can’t everyone? You buy a gallon of interior, a roller and drop cloth, and whammo- slap the paint on the wall. But special effects and finishes? Frightening. Fortunately, the folks at my neighborhood Woodcraft Store helped me. They had a display from “General Finishes” paint products that allowed me to easily spot the look I wanted and what materials I needed to create the look. In my case, I wanted an old barn-wood look (slightly grayish with black and dark highlights) and the chart showed exactly what I needed to do. The instructions below are for the color I chose, but you can finish any way you like.

1. Purchase 1 pint each of "EF Products by General Finishes, Buttermilk Yellow Water Based Milk Paint" and "General Finishes Pitch Black Water Based Glaze Effects." I’ve made two crèches and have only used about half of each of the pints I bought.

2. Test the following on a few pieces of scrap wood (the same wood you’re building your crèche out of) to make sure you get the technique / look right. I can’t emphasize enough how inexperienced I was, and how easy this is. Once you get it right, repeat on the final pieces of the Crèche.

3. Using a lint-free cloth (code words for old t-shirt cut into multiple easy to handle pieces roughly 5” by 5”) and starting with the Buttermilk Yellow paint, dab directly into the paint can getting about as much paint on the cloth as you need for the piece you’re working on. For a big piece like the BASE or PLATFORM that might be about a tablespoon or two, much less for smaller pieces.

4. Hand-rub the paint over the desired surfaces of the piece you’re working on. Be sure to rub and dab deeply into the rough ends of cut wood that is across the grain.

5. Allow to dry (at least a full hour, best if it’s two).

6. Using a fresh cloth, and using the Pitch Black Glaze Effects paint, dab directly into the pain can getting a small amount (much less than the initial coat of yellow). Hand rub over the dried Buttermilk Yellow painted piece and watch the magic of yellow and black creating a rustic old barn-wood grey look. (NOTE- Pay special attention to painting the beadboard and make sure you get the yellow and then black paint deep into the beadboard grooves.

7. Allow to dry (at least a full hour, best if it’s two).


You’re finished! Wasn’t that easy? Now, check out this video to see how easy it is to set up the completed Crèche each Christmas season:

Whether you actually used these instructions to build a crèche, or just read through this far and watched the video for the fun of it, I hope you found this interesting and helpful. If you have any questions or need something clarified feel free to email me.