Extracurricular Activities

Well, my first apple pie was successful despite some minor glitches that really were not noticeable: slightly short of sugar because I used some apple juice concentrate with the granny smith apples then added sugar to taste, but I could have used a tad bit more. I also forgot the salt in the crust, but it wasn't noticeable in the pie - from past experience, I think the crust could stand a slight reduction in the amount of salt anyway. The crust is an oil crust which can be found at the following location: Flakey Pie Crust (oil)

I used my mom's Le Creuset Braiser to prep the filling. I used over 4lbs of Granny Smith apples, which are a little tart. I pealed, cored, sliced the apples and place in the braiser along with 1 can partially frozen apple juice concentrate (next time I want to try apple cider but will have to boil that down first). I added about 3(?)T of corn starch and placd on low heat. The fabulous thing about Le Creuset enameled cast iron is that it uses low heat (and holds the heat) which makes it wonderful for chili, soup, and such. One does have to be careful not to hit the pot with metal utensils as enamel is glass and can break, but with a little care, these pots will provide a lifetime of wonderful results.

Cinnamon, nutmeg, and sugar were added to taste (I based it off of my mom's recipe, but altered it a bit). I did not cook the apples all the way because they would finish cooking in the oven. The pie pan used was by Emile Henry - it cooks very nicely and is deep (lots of filling).


After I arrived home Sunday morning one thing I did was dig out my models from deep in my closet. I have two models that need working on. The first one is a "Sharpie Schooner" and is pictured below. The masts I gently put in place for the picture.

Sharpie Schooners were used along the coast of Florida and other gulf states as a fishing boat and as a coastal trader in a slightly different configuration. This one is setup as a fishing boat and would have had livewells along the outside which would allow water to flow into the wells through holes in the hull and provide the catch with fresh seawater - this would keep the catch alive.

I am having to do some minor repairs on the main sail and the fore sail before assembly of the masts, sails, and rigging. The jib (the triangular sail) is set to go. There is a box partially visible on the left side of the above picture. In that box is my other model that I have been putting off because it will be a rather involved and somewhat costly project. In addition I'll probably want to get some help on it.

The boxed model is a radio controlled P-51D Mustang. I have to buy the radio and servos (little motors to move the control surfaces) and a few more items for it before I can seriously begin on this project. When complete, this plane will have a wingspan of 3ft and a fuselage length is just over 28 inches.


My main areas of concern with this is mounting the engine, getting the right propeller, and the skin of the aircraft. The skin of the aircraft is almost like ceran rap but heavier which is then heated with a heat gun and shrunk to the frame...sort of like how aircraft used to be made with cloth as the skin. But the most worrisome part for me is mounting the engine.

This is the engine! The little grey knob on the right side is the needle valve (leans or enriches the fuel/air mix). The black blob on the left of the engine above the crankshaft is the carburettor. The little silver nob on top of the cylinder head is the glowplug which ignites the fuel. You'll notice a nipple on the side of the muffler - that is to bleed off some of the exhaust and inject it into the fuel tank so as to maintain possitive pressure in the fuel tank.

Anyway, those are the highlights from this weekend. Just a thought - it takes time and effort to build a model, epecially one out of wood (after working with wood, I'll never touch a plastic model again). It also takes care, concern for quality. This is similar to the Christian experience. A Christian, with God's help, builds a life through choices. If they are good choices, the result will be a masterpiece to which Jesus will say 'well done' when He returns. This boat, this airplane, are simply an accumulation of small things (a choice to cut here or there, glue, a touch of paint, etc.) that come together to form a thing of beauty. Something that I try to remember through the day: are my small choices, the seemingly insignificant words and acts, are they benefitting or detracting from the goal of a masterpiece?

Sometimes a choice is made that does detract, which can lead to bigger issues - much like the problem I am having with the main sail - the main gaff is broken. The main gaff is the piece of wood on the top side of the main sail (if you save the last boat picture to you computer then zoom in you'll see 3 little pins around the gaff to hold it in place on the green mat) that holds the sail up - the main boom is the piece of wood along the bottom of the main sail. I took a piece of dowel and sanded it down and tapered it per the blueprints. I then had to drill a couple holes it in - well, I think I might have been a little thin or perhaps I should have done the hole before sanding, but the drilling ended up going through one side of the gaff which then made it weak and it eventually broke. So my current repair operation. I made choices, which in hindsight led to the problem.

This isn't that big of a deal as I think I can blend things in and mostly mask the defect, but what if this was a real ship. Lives would be on the line. In a real ship the best option would be to discard the bad part (and I may end up doing this if the patch doesn't come out well enough) and make a new one. So in life at LEAST one life is on the line with each choice you and I make, our own life. Aim for the best workmanship possible in building your life...I hear there is a Carpenter who does excellent work and His blueprints (the Bible) are available to all.