Living In Tracy

Great Pet Sitter in Tracy!

2011-10-16T16:58:00.000-07:00

Assured Pet Sitting Service!

Whenever my wife and I go out of town we have this stress (atleast my wife does), about leaving our cat home alone. If you guys have Pets / Dogs / Cats or even plants that need tending to when you go on vacation/trips, I have just used and highly recommend this awesome pet sitting service!

Lil Anderson, is the owner of Assured Pet and Home Sitting Services and Tracy resident. Lil and her son who run the company are local Tracy-ites and Lil has been taking care of Animals for 45 years. My wife and I were very impressed with her service right from her knowledge of cats and her promptness, to her communication skills. She responds immediately to texts, calls and voice messages. She is also fully licensed, bonded and insured and a member of Pet Sitters International and the Better Business Bureau.

We went to Hawaii for a week and the local animal shelter was not a good option for our cat, who is really timid and gets really traumatized and moody (like my wife.. ok, ok kidding) :-), so we opted for a pet/home sitter. We were worried at first, because I own a couple of nice cars and also, we were nervous about strangers in our home. But when we met Lil, we were immediately put at ease by her professionalism and trustworthy demeanor. She was also very upfront about everything.

Click to Visit Assured Pet Website...

We returned home to a healthy cat, our home exactly as we left it AND Lil even kept a daily diary (on a couple sheets of paper) of her visits to our home with notes on how our cat behaved and other things around the house, like mail and alarm issues. She gave me updates via text messages and even sent me a picture of my cat.. very impressive.

You cannot go wrong hiring Assured Pet Services and Lil Anderson. Real Peace of Mind. I honestly cannot recommend her highly enough!

Going on Vacation? Call her, you won't be sorry!

Assured Pet and Home Sitting Services
Tracy, CA
Phone: +1-209-814-4693
License: 72890
http://www.assuredpet.com

Here's a pic of our little guy..

Out with Corvette, In with Viper!!

2011-10-13T14:39:00.000-07:00

The most brutally insane vehicle I have ever driven!!

Since I sold my 2003 Corvette, I've been pining for a Viper GTS. Had my heart set on a Dodge Viper for a long time. Originally wanted a 96-97 Blue/White combo, but those are extremely hard to come by. Only 1500 or so were ever built, so I kept an eye out for any other colored GTS I could find. Preferably Sapphire blue or Silver.
I finally found one in Escondido, CA.
Had it shipped all the way to Tracy, CA. It has only 32,000 miles on it.

A little more about the car.

V10, 8 Liter Engine, Deep Sapphire Blue Pearl, 6-Speed manual Transmission.
Black leather Interior. One of only 130 ever made of this color in 2001 without Stripes.
In 2001, there were a total of only 827 GTS produced. These cars are put together by hand. I am super proud to own one of these. Just 10 years old and it is already a classic and a collectors car. This body style was only made from 1996 to 2002. It is the most popular distinctive and loved design of all Vipers. Chrome Alloy Viper wheels. Borla Exhaust. Upgraded Audio system with Bluetooth, USB, MP3, Sirius Satellite Radio and iPhone inputs.

It is very raw and sometimes uncontrollable. It has been said that the Dodge Viper is a real drivers car and is extremely unforgiving if not handled right. Seriously, the car wants to kill you.. Very high Torque and no Traction control.
There were just 7000 Viper GTS ever produced worldwide. I've been told that only about 60% exist on the road today.

I am still crazy about corvettes and still own my 1970 Stingray, so I will continue being a 'Corvette guy'. But I Love my Viper!

Oh well. Fun times!! :)
See more pictures here...

Videos of My Daily Commute.

2011-09-20T22:39:00.000-07:00

My Daily commute.

Using my GoPro camera, I made a Video of My Daily Commute to work and my Trip home from Tracy to Sunnyvale to Tracy, CA.

This one is on my way to work at 9:00 AM

This one is on my way home at 6:00 PM

Enjoy

Tracy DMV

2011-09-17T13:07:00.000-07:00

Department of Motor Vehicles, Tracy CA

Very thankful to have such an efficient and well run DMV office in Tracy.

I used to live in Santa Clara and go to the DMV there. That was a chore and it was too overcrowded.

(Photo by Chris Pinto)

By comparison, the Tracy DMV is beautiful and well lit. Not a stuffy government office at all... It is large, spacious, they do everything, even behind the wheel tests. My wife did her driving test recently and the test administrator was very professional and courteous.

The staff behind the desks are very friendly and take time to talk to you and treat you very well. They even go out of their way to solve issues and problems, like I had recently with my Viper registration.

Anyways, I just wanted to give the Tracy DMV a big thumbs up for a job well done.

Here are a few pictures. I got the first 3 from another website.

Credits to the Photographer Mignon O'Young.

(Photo by Mignon O'Young)

(Photo by Mignon O'Young)

(Photo by Mignon O'Young)

Address:
2785 Auto Plaza Drive
Tracy, 95304
(800)777-0133

Office Hours
Mon., Tues., Thurs., Friday: 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM

The Cross on the Altamont

2011-04-30T23:09:00.000-07:00

As you leave Livermore and drive easterly towards Tracy onto the Altamont Pass on Highway 580, you come across a really big Cross cut out of the hill to the left of the highway.. It says "Jesus Saves".

The cool part is, it lights up at night (Like a big runway) and one can even see it from the sky. Here's an aerial picture of it from Google Maps. I quite like it when land owners near the highway or near it, produce statements or works of art for passers by to view.. Such is Americana.. From sculptures made of half buried cadillacs to a giant Picnic basket... We will always have creativity..

All I can say to the owner of the land or the creator of the cross on it is, "Bless you Sir" and "Thank you" for sharing.

Amen.

One afternoon, 3 oil changes..

2011-03-17T12:57:00.000-07:00

It helps to maintain your own cars.

Changed the Oil in 3 of my cars yesterday. 3 Different grades of Oil..

Took a total of 2 hours and I probably saved about 50-60 bucks and 2 days in lost time, than if I had taken them individually to the shop.

Those Race Ramps are the best investment I've ever made.. Some Pics..

I stopped in between to take my 1970 Stingray for a spin for 10 minutes.

Oh well, now to do the wife's car..

Tracy Town Hall

2011-01-23T14:27:00.000-08:00

A Trip to Tracy City Hall.

Went to Tracy Town hall yesterday to inquire about permits and business licences for a project I'm working on.. Was told that the area around Tracy is controlled or rather comes under San Joaquin county jurisdiction and zoning and that if the land I'm using does not fall in the dotted lines for Tracy, I should inquire at the zoning office in Stockton.

Took some pictures of Tracy City Hall with my cellphone. It is a really nicely made and clean building. It has the understated elegance of a proud small town. Very very nice indeed.

Here is a nice Pic I found of the new City Hall.
This Picture by Danny Anderson

The Old Town Hall
Here are a couple of Pics I got from the web, of the Old Tracy Town Hall and Jail. built in 1900, Before they built the New building at the Civic Center Plaza a few years ago...

Old Building, apparently it was also a Jailhouse??

Lots of History can be found in this little town of over 82,000 people (Now that's hardly a village is it?)

Ready for another day of Paintballing...

2011-01-08T16:12:00.000-08:00

Spent all of the weekend Paintballing.
I jammed up my Paintball gun pretty good. A few paintballs got chopped in the hopper and gummed up the works...

I had green goop dripping from my gun like crazy...
Anyways, pulled the pins an barrels and cleaned them well. Looking forward to some paintballing fun in the coming weeks..

Tracy Mall at Christmas time!

2010-12-20T11:12:00.000-08:00

The Tracy Mall at Christmas time.

Merry Christmas to all my fellow Tracy-ites !!

It seems to have been an uneventful year, with a little depression and a lot of hand wringing for those who own homes and have lost money or are wallowing in debt. Well.. I try to forget. It is after all all in the mind.

Cut your Cable connections, stop watching the Media biased Cable news networks and feel a little better. I did.. and I do. Anyways, I was strolling through the Tracy Mall at Naglee road a couple of days ago and thought I'd snap a couple of pictures for you guys... Enjoy and Have a very Merry Christmas!!

Here's one of The mall with folks getting their booths ready in the early morning.

Here's the Playpen, where kids can sit on Santa's lap. Imagine how innocent and worry free life is for little kids at this moment in time...

This Santa really looked the part.

Here's the Merry go round / Carousel in the Tracy Mall, near the food court.

Cheers and Merry-ness to you all !

Some Pics of South Tracy

2010-11-16T07:04:00.000-08:00

My drive through South Tracy.

Just some Pics I thought I'd share with you guys of the beautiful empty golden lands in the south of Tracy near Highway 580. Heres a map of what I mean followed by a few pictures...

The roads are long and go on for miles and make for a very nice leisurely drive...
Lots of wild life too.. I saw a Coyote and many squirrels and other small critters run across the road when they saw me coming..

Enjoy
Chris.

These are Cellphone pictures, so I apologize for the crumminess.. I'll post some more pics, later this week, taken with a better Camera...

Pictures of Tracy - Part 3

2010-05-16T21:56:00.000-07:00

Pictures of Tracy - Part 3

More pics...

Here is a couple pictures of the NEW 10th street Tracy Rail station.
NOTE: This is different from the ACE Train Station on Tracy blvd and Linnie rd.

Here is a pic of Tracy Downtown seen from 9th st.
Some really nice shops and eateries here..
Looks a bit empty, because it is sunday evening.

Here's a picture of the Tracy Grand Theater
It was rebuilt 2 years ago inside and out.

More coming soon...

Pictures of Tracy - Part 2

2010-04-27T15:44:00.000-07:00

More pictures of Tracy!

Here are some more Pictures of Tracy, California.. the nicest little town in America... (To me atleast) :-) Join me as I drive through town clicking photographs. I'm not an expert cameraman, but I do know how to click a quick one.

Here's a nice one of the Safeway Gas station, at the corner of
Corral Hollow and 11th St, right as you get into town.

Gas is cheaper in Tracy, than in the bay area..
(10 cents less a gallon atleast, I swear)

Here's a picture of the OSH over on Corral Hollow and 11th.

Here's a picture of CVS Pharmacy, just next to OSH
This used to be Longs Drugs..

Here's one of an office building opposite the
Self-storage Center on 11th St.
Maybe, I'll have an office in it someday. :)

The 99cent store (Dollar store) at the intersection
of 11th st and Lincoln blvd. This is a huge store with
all sorts of stuff for under a buck.

11th Street, just as you enter tracy from the 205 Highway
Note the nice ornamental street lights and landscaping on the center divide.

Tracy Home Depot, every home owners favorite store.

A pic of La Costa, very popular joing at the corner of 11th and East st
just opposite Tracy High,

A pic of KFC at 11th and Wall st. There are two KFC's in Tracy,
This one and another At grant Line Rd and Henley Pkwy.

Pictures of Tracy - Part 1

2010-02-28T15:40:00.000-08:00

A photo Tour of my town

I was just thinking of what a lovely little town this is.. To me it represents little town America, but on a California Bay Area Scale.. Because it may seem small, but it is really spread out and self contained. Tracy has everything from Osh, to Walmart, to Safeway, to Costco and Longs, Walgreens, Rite-Aid.. and all the smaller chains. It even has many smaller locally owned stores geared to serve the city.. In Tracy, you will find all the avenues for shopping and other activities that you can in every other metropolitan area / city in America.. The First part of this Post will have pictures of the shops the Mall, The theater...just Random pictures really... Join me as I drive through the city and click away...

Tracy High School. This building was recently renovated and
rebuilt and a lot was spent to make it look fabulous. Good Job !

Pretty much the center of downtown. Tracy Inn,
A historical building, at the intesection of 11th and Holly Dr.

A New Raley's opened in the plaza at Tracy blvd and Valpico

Orchard restaurant : You can see this restaurant
from the 205 highway, at grant line road.

Tracy Fire station at 11th St. There are 3 fire stations in Tracy (I think)

Not to forget the quintessential Tracy Walmart
that every little town in America is meant to have..
A pic of my vette in the parking lot. :)

Shopping plaza at the intersection of Tracy blvd
and Shulte, near the Chevron and Save mart.

I will keep adding to this list...

SNOW on the Altamont Pass !!

2009-12-07T15:46:00.000-08:00

It snowed today in Tracy

Wow ! I have never seen anything as awesome as the sight this morning on my usual commute to work.. Meadows and round rump hills of soft white snow !

The entire range of hills in and around the Altamont Pass was covered in snow. I have been in Tracy for 3 years now, but this is the first time this has happened. Here are some pictures I took...

Another Tracy-ite Dave Parker did good by taking some lovely Close-up shots...

I love the snow... :)

Restoring my 1970 vette...

2009-09-16T13:46:00.000-07:00

Been restoring this car since Jan of this year when I bought it...
I set up a little site so you could follow it if you want to.

http://www.eslurf.com/corvette/1970/index.html

It is nearly complete...

Just needs some fine tuning and some electrical work and paint.. then it will be ready to roll. Pity it wasn't ready in the summer, I missed many hours of fun. Oh well, many summers to drive it in the future hopefully.

If you have any comments or questions, do post em below...

Sold my Pool table.

2009-07-16T13:59:00.000-07:00

Pity !

When I first bought my house, I thought having a pool table would be so cool ! I used to live in an apartment before, so having all that extra space was a huge incentive to buy a pool table.

I really enjoyed it though, I must say. I've played pool with my wife and many friends.

Anyway, one fine day, you realize you've outgrown it and you could use the extra space for something else. THe pool table had become like a table to keep stuff on in the garage. So I sold it for roughly the same price I paid for it two years ago.

How many of you have bought and grown tired of the pool table? Sad, but it happens eh ?
I ended up putting car parts from my Vette restoration on it.

I'm looking to make a work bench and perhaps put a couch in the empty space, so I can relax and look at my cars and down a brewski or two sometime.. LOL

On my third corvette already...

2009-03-21T19:28:00.000-07:00

.. and not a mid-life crisis in sight. LOL.

Well, you must have read that I sold my 1977 Corvette coupe last may (2008). I always wanted an older chrome bumper Vette, so for Christmas, I bought myself a 1970 Corvette Stingray.

Now Since Corvettes are how I roll, player needs to have a slick ride to drive on a daily basis. So i sold the Mitsubishi Eclipse I had and signed up for a 50th Anniversary Corvette coupe. It is a one owner, well taken care of 2003 Corvette, 50th Anniversary with just 63k miles on the clock. And for a good price too.

(Click for more detail)

Best decision I ever made. I enjoy this beast ! Thank you Chevy ! God Bless this country.. and GM if you're listening.. If you put as much love into all your cars as you do the corvette, you will never fail.

(Click for more detail)

(Click for more detail)

(Click for more detail)

I upgraded the Exhaust system to a Twin 4" Chrome tip Magnaflow. I Even put in a Vortex, intake bridge. See below.

(Click for more detail)

THis car has HUD (Heads-up Display), which means it projects the dashboard gauges onto the inside of the windscreen, so I never have to look down when driving... Feels like a fighter plane... especially at night !! :)

(Click for more detail)

My Christmas Present

2009-01-01T12:01:00.000-08:00

1970 Stingray Corvette.

Look what Santa got me for Christmas...
That's right ! A Bumper Vette.
I always regretted selling my 1977 Corvette (May 2008). I wanted another c3.

I found this Corvette in Lincoln, CA some miles northeast of Sacramento. It wasn't in the greatest shape. But it is a chrome bumper Corvette and it is rare. They only made full Chrome bumper C3 Corvettes from 1968 to 1972. Just 5 years. After that Chevy, discontinued the Chrome bumpers and Put Fiberglass Bumpers on their vettes instead. Only 1973 had the rear bumpers, but not the front.

Anyways, this will be one of two Corvettes for me. This one will be my project car for the Next whole year.. I'll work on it on weekends and restore it slowly. I also plan to buy a C5 vette after I sell my Mitsubishi eclipse.

You can see the restoration progress here.

Here are some pictures.

Click to enlarge

Happy New Year 2009!

Christmas 2008 and New Years 2009

2008-12-25T11:39:00.000-08:00

Christmas was a good time this year.

True, the country is reeling under an economic downturn.
True, Everyone is fearful for their livelihoods and family.
True, Home values are upside down all over.

But This Christmas I was thankful for many things. That this year was good, that my career is going well and that I have friends and family I love and who love me.

Spent this Christmas and New years at home with my wife and my Mom-in-law (Yes, she loves me as well). We also went to San Francisco to Union Square to see the lights and sounds. and to San Jose to see the "Christmas in the Park" decorations. We also caught a performance of "The Nutcracker" at the San Francisco Ballet off Van Ness. Really good !

Put up a Christmas tree, Decorations on the house and got presents.. What more could one want..

Happy New year to all.

Our Hot Air Balloon ride over Tracy.

2008-09-03T16:02:00.000-07:00

My Mom-in-Law has come to visit.

So being the good Son-in-law, I decided to make her trip memorable by taking her for a hot air balloon ride over the San Joaquin valley. You probably heard about Professor Muldoon's Hot air balloon company in an earlier blog post of mine, but I didn't have pictures then.

So here are a bunch of pics we took (Wife, Mom-in-law and I) of our Hot air Ride in the Aerostat "Inspiration". We made the trip on the 3rd of September at 6:30 in the morning, before it became windy. Met Professor Muldoon (Bob) at the Tracy Airport. He looks a lot like Kenny Rodgers. The Tracy Airport is a small and neatly kept strip, just south of Linnie road on South Tracy blvd. They also have a flying school there I noticed...

(Click pics below to enlarge)

Here are a few pics of Tracy from the Sky..

2 Pics I snapped as we were coming in for the landing.

We had a great time and went to iHop for breakfast after that.

Another point of note is that Tracy, CA is home to the JESUS Hot Air Balloon.
(See pictures below)

Thank you Bob!

Get information on these rides below.
The rides are not expensive and really worth the experience.
CLICK Here for the website
Professor Muldoon's Hot Air Balloon Company
P.O. Box 1208
Tracy, CA 95378-1208
Phone: (800) 822-3333
(209) 833-9014

Building a Fish Pond and Waterfall - Part 1

2008-07-09T12:52:00.000-07:00

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Part 1

Its been a little over a year since I moved into my new house and I have been maintaining and landscaping my backyard for all that time. This spring I decided to build a Fish Pond, or a Koi Carp pond as some call it. Of course I realized it was not as easy as digging a hole in the ground, throwing a few water lilies in and then plopping a fish or two to swamp it there and eventually die.

(Click images to enlarge)

No, I wanted to build a really nice pond, with a sustained ecosystem, or atleast one which needed minimal upkeep and would be as simple to maintain as a sprinkler system for a grass lawn. Turns out there is a lot of effort required to build and set a system like this up, so I set about the task with confidence and armed with all the knowledge and processes I had learned from books, the internet and of course a couple of other Pond owners. This was going to be fun !

As you may well recall, this was a picture I took of my backyard when I bought my house.. 3000 sq. feet of pure nothingness.. (Except weeds which I had painstakingly removed )

Step 0
The Great Plan !

Everything great starts on a drawing board and if it doesn't then it is doomed to failure. I started by putting the design down on paper. I had decided after a lot of reading and recognition of the pitfalls that could occur, that my pond would have to have the following characteristics and parameters.

Has to be able to hold atleast 1500 to 2000 gallons of water, anything smaller would not look good or feel worth the effort.
Needs to be atleast 4-5 feet deep at the deepest point, so that fish can hide from predators and changes in climate (Tracy has extremes)
Needs to have sloping walls, like a toilet bowl, so that dirt and fish poop can sink to the lowest point and be vacuumed out via a pump and filter system that I would build into the design.
Needs to have a waterfall leading into the pond, so that I can hear the soothing sounds of a bubbling brook (lol, I know sounds gay! for give me). Also helps aerate the water.
The pond will need an automatic filtration system as well as a system to keep the water clear and free of green cloudy algae. That would require an Ultraviolet clarifier with atleast a 30-40 watt UV bulb and a bio-filter and a Pump with enough oomph to run the show.
Pipes and plumbing would have to be a part of the pond structure.
I wanted at least one foot of the pond to be above ground, so that one could sit on a ledge and look into the pond, that meant that the pond had to be made of concrete and waterproofed.

Here are sketches I had done initially, gives you an idea of the thought put into it.

(Click images to enlarge)

Step 1
Digging the hole !

It took me one month to dig the hole bit by bit. I put stones around the periphery so that no one would fall in by mistake. (I mean my wife, she's a bit accident prone.. lol)

(Click images to enlarge)

I don't have more pictures of the digging, suffice to say I dug the flask shape and hollowed it out to 3 feet deep. and gently sloped the edges inwards to the center drain point.

Step 2
Hiring the Homies to get the Concrete Poured and Shaped !

The next stage of the pond was way too complex to do without help. So I went out and hired a concrete guy (Martin) I found locally and 2 other homies (He got them along to help him)

Anyways they took 2 days to further dig and smoothen things under my supervision and lay down the PVC pipe that would eventually be the drain. The also put a board structure around the digout in the shape I had drawn (Flask/Gourd shape) This was to shape the concrete when it arrived and they had to pour it. I am glad I hired these guys.. I would have never gotten to the next stage without them.

Lots of Pictures Below..
You can see the underlayment gravel and the Pipe buried with the 2 ends showing.

(Click images to enlarge)

Step 3
Making the Terra-Cotta ledge

Making the ledge with Terra-Cotta tiles was fun, but a royal pain, because I had to constantly level it. Used fast setting cement for this, had to work really fast and make sure I constantly levelled and wiped the extra away with a wet cloth. One of the homies helped me :-)
Made it worth his while.

(Click images to enlarge)

Step 4
Letting the Concrete cure.
Doing other Backyard Landscaping meanwhile...

2 months have passed since the pond was built and it is probably cured solid by now. I spent the rest of the spring planting and landscaping the rest of tha Backyard. I had set up a drip system and laid out patters using Retaining Wall blocks and I must say it looked pretty good. so I planted and planted and my wife helped me.. When I finally finished the back yard looked quite transformed from the plain weed infested nothingness to a living and thriving yard with plants and sprinklers spraying about 3 times a day. I also spent time getting gravel (Lava rock) and huge boulders to place strategically around the pond. You can see the work done and compare by looking at the pics below.

(Click images to enlarge)

Step 5
Etching, Staining and Sealing the exterior pond wall.

I took these pictures after I spent one weekend Etching, Staining the outer wall (Burgundy) and sealing the pond exterior.

(Click images to enlarge)

Step 6
Buying the Pond equipment

Bought the following equipment for the pond.

17x17 feet of Black PVC liner for the waterfall
A Calpump T-1500 water Pump
A Savio 31" Waterfall Weir with mechanical filtration
A Calpump UV Clarifier with a 36 watt UV bulb
Black and Grey PVC pipes 1 inch, 1.5 inch , 1.25 inch and 3 inch.. and atleast 20 different odds and end connectors and adapters so that the pond plumbing fit perfectly. A few PVC check valves too.
Some PVC cement
Perma-Flex to line the inside of the pond and waterproof it.

(Click images to enlarge)

There's more to come in part 2
:-)

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Building a Fish Pond and Waterfall - Part 2

2008-07-09T12:41:00.000-07:00

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Part 2

Step 7
Lining the interior surface
of the Pond with rubber coating

I started by etching with Concrete etcher and then sealing the interior walls of the pond with Perma-Flex. Used a gallon of concrete etcher to clean the concrete and open the pores for absorption. I washed out the residues and sponged the rest out, then I waited a day for the rest to dry, then used a leaf blower to blow the dust accumulated in the empty pond.

Then I applied PermaFlex to the interior surface to waterproof the pond (Pale yellow color). Perma-Flex is actually a Rubber coating that when sprayed (or in this case rolled) onto a porous or concrete surface, actually permeates into the concrete and fills up all the microscopic and larger pores, thereby forming a waterproof barrier. It is non-toxic and forms a rubberlike layer over the concrete that is unaffected even by hydrostatic pressure.

(Click thumbnails to Enlarge)

Step 8
The Filtration system assembly

Laying down Weedpaper before starting the Filtration system assembly.

(Click thumbnails to Enlarge)

Step 9
Fastening the Pump
and UV Clarifier to Treated Wood bases

I fastened the Pump and the Ultraviolet Clarifier to treated wood bases so I can anchor them. Had to drill four 1/2 inch holes in each.

(Click thumbnails to Enlarge)

Then I laid the pump and UV Clarifier down and anchored them with 1 foot metal stakes.

Step 10
The Ultraviolet Clarifier UV Tube

I inserted the 36Watt Ultraviolet Bulb into the UV Clarifier housing (very gingerly). I was reminded of the helix shaped tubes from the movie Resident Evil in which the virus was contained before they broke and all hell was set loose.. :)

(Click thumbnails to Enlarge)

Step 11
Connecting it all up

Then I connected the UV Clarifier output to the Waterfall Weir. Bonded all the PVC fittings tight with PVC cement. The Waterfall Weir/Biofilter is raised to 1 foot above the planned pond water level. That should be enough for gravity to do it's thing. It is beginning to come together.

Step 12
Laying down the PVC Liner

The next big job was unfurling and laying down the PVC pond liner.
It smelled pleasantly of hot rubber, not surprisingly considering that it was about 94 degrees F outside when I was doing this.

(Click thumbnails to Enlarge)

One end of the PVC liner needs to be fastened to the lip of the Waterfall Weir using about 16 screws and the lip fastener.

(Click thumbnails to Enlarge)

The liner now needs to be nipped and tucked and folded into all corners and crevasses and form fitted by hand to create a free flow passageway from the lip of the Waterfall weir to the Pond. I do this using the cinder blocks underneath for support, as well as small boulders and moss rocks along the periphery to build the side walls and structure. I use flagstones underneath to give it a flat and smooth surface.

(Click thumbnails to Enlarge)

Step 13
Form fitting the liner to the waterfall
with flagstones and river rock.

Next, I use egg shaped smooth river rocks and flagstone to create a descending terraced spillway from the Weir Lip all the way to the Pond and then 6 inches under the planned water level.

(Click thumbnails to Enlarge)

There ! :-)
Next I will have to use all the remaining River rocks to cover the black liner from all sides and also shore up the sides of the waterfall and backfill the rear of the Waterfall Weir.

More coming up in Part 3 !!

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Building a Fish Pond and Waterfall - Part 3

2008-07-08T15:17:00.000-07:00

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Part 3

Continued from Part 2
Join me, as I put the finishing touches on the pond
and get to fill it and turn it on.

Step 14
Covering the PVC lining with round river rock.

This was the fun part. I took 3-4 days to carry wheel barrows of the round river rock to the pond and piece by piece lay it in a way that conformed to the way the water would flow, as well as weigh down and also cover the liner appropriately. I even got a little Mermaid statue to put at the waters edge.. :)

(Click images to enlarge)

Step 15
Trying to blend the liner with spray paint.

I didn't want the black liner to show through the rocks, so I had 2 options. Either I'd have to spray it with waterfall filler foam (And I would need a lot!), or I could prime it and then spray paint it with pvc/plastic paint. The thing about the PVC liner is that after some time, even if it is showing through, it gets dusty and gray and sort of looks like a rock surface anyway. But I thought, hey, why not spray paint the external part anyways, to make it look more natural from the get-go. Here are pictures of the liner sprayed with plastic/pvc primer (white), then sprayed with light and dark brown textured paint.

(Click images to enlarge)

Step 16
Finishing off the liner covering.

After spraying, I used the remaining river rock to cover up all the little black bits that showed.

(Click images to enlarge)

Step 17
The Pond Lighting.

I bought elements of the Pond lighting kit from Home Depot.
A 100Watt Transformer, 3 Submersible lights with 20W bulbs and a 20foot waterproof cable for each. Also bought a timer, so the lights only come on in the evening between a certain time and shut off by night. The Transformer already had a timer built in, but I needed the extra timer, so I could run a secondary submersible pump to keep the water current going.

(Click image to enlarge)

Once I finished the setup and connections for the lights in my garage, I carried the assembly and put it in the pond, using river rock to anchor and hide the lights and the cables, as much as possible. Don't forget that once the pond is filled, the inner surface of the pond will get a light carpet of green water algae, so the black cable will not be seen.

(Click images to enlarge)

Step 18
The Intake Screen installation.

I bought intake screens and topped them off with a valve assembly to prevent backflow. Glued it all together with PVC cement and teflon tape.. :)

(Click images to enlarge)

Attached the Dual Intakes at different heights at the ends of the intake pipes laid through the concrete base. Arright, nearly done biatches !!

(Click images to enlarge)

Step 19
Making a table top, so the fish can hide underneath.
And lets not forget the water plants !!

Both in the Hot summer and cold winters, the fish would need a place to hide. Plus there's the problem of predators like Cranes and other fish eating birds!
So I laid out flagstones over three curved concrete arches and bought some water plants, including 2 pots of waterlillies !! Hope that's enough... time to fillerup !!!

(Click images to enlarge)

Step 20
Filling up the Pond !!
... and turning on the lights :-)

I have waited for this moment for 8 months !!! Ever since I first thought up the Pond idea. Now I finally get to fill it ! I rented a Water meter from the local Water garden center (Same place I got the water plants and where I will buy the fish from.. ) The water meter will measure how many gallons I've pumped into the pond, so I can thereby calculate how much treatment/gallon etc, I may need in the future.

(Click images to enlarge)

Here are pictures of the filling, with the lights on even ! It took all of 6 hours to fill the pond and It was so very beautiful, I nearly cried ! (Yes, I get like that)
The wife was really excited with all the progress. Thats her sitting on the viewing bench. (We bought the bench from Half Moon Bay, really nice strudy one, made of concrete., with lions as the legs.

(Click images to enlarge)

Step 21
The Barley and Beneficial bacteria treatment.

Now a fish pond is the polar opposite of a swimming pool. In a swimming pool, one needs to destroy algae and bacteria and keep the water sparkling clear, so people can swim in it. Chemicals like Chlorine and strong algaecide are used.. In a fish pond however, one needs to keep the water clear, while at the same time not make it toxic to the fish and the plant life. This involves keeping the pH value of the water constant and at a state where beneficial bacteria thrive and green algae grow, but not cloud the water. The water needs to remain clean and clear. Thats why I have the filter and the UV Clarifier built in. This runs non-stop 24/7. I also gave the water the barley treatment. Decomposing Barley in the water causes the string algae to sink to the bottom and get sucked in by the filter/pump. also it keeps the water clear. The beneficial bacteria are cultured in the waterfall weir, to keep the balance in this mini-ecosystem.

I got a lot of this stuff from 123ponds.com. They are really good and deliver on time and nicely packed. I'd recommend them. Plus their website is well laid out.

Step 22
Turning the Pump / Filter / Waterfall ON !

POWER ON !!!! haha
Aaah the soothing sound of flowing water and a trickling stream.. Wonderful !

(Click images to enlarge)

Step 23
One week later. Living breathing pond.

The Waterlilies have reached the surface from their pots, the natural algae are setting in.. The pond is beginning to come to life... All that's remaining are the fish !! Need the pond to be biologically ready before I put the fish in..

Step 23
The Fish are here !!.

Bought them small, because they are cheaper that way, and they get to acclimatize when they're smaller and grow large in their pond. I didn't get Koi Carps, since I've been advised that they are very delicate and prone to many illnesses and are harder to maintain than Goldfish and other small carp breeds, So I got goldfish, Not the flower tailed, chubby azz variety, but the hardier streamlined ones..

I was worried about the cranes and other predators, so I bought this water scarecrow spitter thingy with a motion sensor.. hope it helps...

Step 24
Taking a breather and filling my beer mug.

The time has come for me to grab a chilled one and sit back and enjoy my back yard.. So I bid you adieu and hope I've entertained you and hopefully informed you on the joy of building something from scratch.
I will leave you with the picture of my pond from what it was a year ago and now.

BEFORE

and AFTER

Not bad ... not bad at all.. Cheers..

Classic Tracy Police Car.

2008-07-04T10:44:00.000-07:00

Some Way Classic and Way Modern Po-Po !! ;-)
(Pardon the slang, I couldn't resist)

I saw a beautiful sight today.
(You know how much I love vintage/Classic Cars)

Went to OSH on 11th Street and saw a Classic Police car with Historic plates et al, parked there. Best thing was that it looked like it came off the assembly line, it was so pristinely restored.

A Real Tracy Police car from the 50s
(I estimate it to be a 52-54 Ford Crestline)

Here are some pictures.. (Click to enlarge)

Also it should be noted that the Current Tracy Police Department have a really cool Dodge Charger Cop Car.. I have seen it on the roads, sounding all mean and intimidating. See a pic of what I'm talking about..

(Click to enlarge)

Of course , here's the rest of em.

(Click to enlarge)

Have a Great 4th of July !

Riding the ACE Train !

2008-06-12T07:54:00.000-07:00

Taking the Altamont Commuter Express Train to work,
(As opposed to driving)

Last month I finally and officially freaked out at the gas pump.
I've never paid much attention to the daily price I paid, instead I was content with filling my tank everyday with 4 gallons of fuel. (That got me from Tracy to Sunnyvale and back -105 miles)

Well that ungrateful morning, I looked at the price for 4 gallons of regular and realized that I was paying nearly $20 a day just to go to work. Totally unacceptable !! I parked my car at the Santa Clara Station that evening and took the ACE train home. Now I have ridden the ACE before, once in a while, but preferred driving as it allowed me more control over my work timings, but I've got to admit that enough is enough and paying, nay, WASTING $600 a month on just gas was not going to swing it anymore....

(Click the images to enlarge)

So I bought myself a Monthly Pass ($225.75) and I now cycle to the station every morning from home, and back home from the station every evening. I currently park my car at the Great America station in Santa Clara to board the train, but I can't keep it there over the weekends as vandalism has sometimes been known to occur. I need to buy myself a cheap ass $1000 car to park there...

(Click the images to enlarge)

The Ace train is really good, on time and cost effective. The train is kept clean, the conductors and operators are very courteous and it has tables to put your laptop on and work, and the plugs to plug them in. It also has wi-fi, but it is sometimes hard to get a strong connection. I now save $400 a month on my fuel bill.. I reach work at 8:30am (As opposed to 10am when driving) and I leave at 5:30pm to catch the last 5:45 train back to Tracy...

No stress of driving, (Or having to deal with the Asshats on the highway) saving on fuel and peace of mind..

I can live with that.

Here are a few more pictures I took.

The Great America Station Parking Lot
(Click the images to enlarge)

The TRACY Station (Click the images to enlarge)

Pictures of the Altamont Expressway, from the Train
I used to be one of those drivers (lol)
(Click the images to enlarge)

Check the ACE train Schedule and maps and stuff on their website.
http://www.acerail.com/

Courtesy ACErail website

http://www.acerail.com/schedules/route-map.htm

Ground Fog day !!

2008-01-23T10:51:00.000-08:00

Driving through the Mist !

The commute to the Bay area brings with it a peculiar experience during the cold months. All along the Altamont Pass and indeed much of Tracy is a thick blanket of Ground fog. But only in the early morning till around 9am when it starts to clear...

This is particularly hazardous during the winter months where the fog envelopes the highway and visibility is severely restricted... and the funniest thing is, there is no wind to blow the fog away, so it just sits there and commuters like myself have to slow down to 30-45 miles an hour for safety.

Personally, I find it surrealistic... feels like you're driving in the clouds.. a really nice feeling...

here are a few normal and fog pictures..

Altamont pass On a normal sunny day and the same point on a Foggy Day !

Another shot On a normal sunny day and the same point on a Foggy Day !

Drive safely guys !

Fleet week - San Francisco

2007-10-08T15:21:00.000-07:00

Angels in the Bay !!

Very few things are more awe inspiring and breathtaking (..not to mention deafening) than seeing a jet fighter pass less than 1000 feet over your head. No less, when the flight team performing these maneuvers are the world famous "Blue Angels". That's exactly what I experienced this weekend in beautiful San Francisco.

It was Fleet week and the navy brought out their top guns and ships and bombers to cavort in the sky above the city. It really made me proud of being in this country and see such a fantastic mix of aerial dare-devilry and renowned landmarks (Golden Gate bridge, Alcatraz, etc) on the same stage...

I took a few pictures for you to see, but nothing can express the sheer thrill of watching the Blue Angels live !! The entire airshow part of the fleet week celebrations included aerial demonstrations by the Navy's Blue Angels, Team Oracle, and the Air Force's F-16 Demonstration Team!

For those who don't know who the blue angels are,
have a look at this video. (Nice Van Halen soundtrack) ;)

Here is the website http://www.fleetweek.us/fleetweek

A New Car !

2007-09-19T11:20:00.000-07:00

Another day, Another set of wheels...

Anyone who knows me, knows that I love cars. Now I may not be wealthy or get paid seven figures, but I do my fair share of jumping in and out of cars based on my mood and circumstance.

When I was little, my dad used to change cars every few months... We were in the middle east and American cars were the rage. He had everything from Pontiacs to Chevys to Japanese cars. My dad still changes his cars every 2 years or so... I seem to have caught the bug from him..

Imagine this.. I have bought/sold 7 cars in the last 4 years. I currently own 3 cars. A 99 Dodge Durango, a 77 Corvette Stingray and my latest car (And commuter) a 2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse.

Here are some pictures of the new car, 2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse
(I bought it on 18th September 2007)

It will be a fun commuter car, i guess...
Bought it from the Tracy Auto Mall off Naglee road.

HERE ARE PICS OF ALL THE OTHER CARS I've OWNED/OWN

Wife with her latest car (99 Durango)
(currently own)

My Corvette Stingray and I (currently own)

Wife with our previous car (99 VW PASSAT)
- sold Sep 2007

My much loved previous customized 99 Durango
It was the shiznit... was sad to sell it.. - sold Aug 2005

My First Dodge (2002 Dodge Intrepid) - sold Oct 2004

My trusty Jeep (1997 Cherokee Laredo)
- sold Sep 2003

Hopefully, many more to come...

Tracy - Glass on the Grass

2007-08-20T10:36:00.000-07:00

The Tracy, "Glass-on-the-Grass" Corvette show !!

Been looking forward to this all year. Golden State Corvettes put this show together in Lincoln Park in Tracy.

There were about 50 Corvettes of all shapes, generations and hues ! Really a beautiful day. And the weather was really good too ! As usual, this roving enthusiast took a few pics... :)

SEE ALL THE PHOTOS
(About 62 pics) - click here.

PS: My friend and neighbour Ken, (Seen with his 2 daughters) won 3rd place with his vette in its class.

~

Hot Air Balloons over Tracy.

2007-08-09T11:58:00.000-07:00

I have always been Fascinated by Hot Air Ballooning !

Woke up this morning and went outside to pick up the morning paper (Tracy Press :-) Looked up and saw two hot air balloons in the sky.

Now, being a former resident of Santa Clara, I never really saw one up close, let alone in the open blue sky, so I was pretty excited. Ran inside to get my camera. Took a few pictures !

I am going to book my wife and me on one of those air tours of the valley !!! Anybody want to join me with their spouse / significant other ?

:-)

This is the Tracy site I found:
CLICK Here for the website
Professor Muldoon's Hot Air Balloon Company
P.O. Box 1208
Tracy, CA 95378-1208
Phone: (800) 822-3333
(209) 833-9014

Let me know, My wife and I are going next weekend
(18th Aug '07)

God, I love this country !

Mr Ed's Mufflers - Good job!

2007-07-02T10:30:00.000-07:00

A muffler and pipe welding recommendation !
Mr Ed's Mufflers, Tracy CA (Off East 11th St)

I've been learning over the last few months, that Tracy is a very self contained and self sufficient little city, Very little that you need, cannot be found right here in town.

The Exhaust pipes on My Dodge Durango were rusted from the mufflers till the chrome tips. The previous owner apparently drove it up in Tahoe in the snow a lot. I did the mufflers on my Corvette last year from a guy in Santa Clara who put in Dual Flowmasters and angled chrome tips. Now I didn't want to drive all the way to the bay area just to do the pipes on my truck, so I thought I'd search locally.

Sure enough, I found this highly recommended place off East 11th st called Mr. Ed's Mufflers. The guy who worked there was so polite and no-nonsense and charged me fairly for dual pipes, Y-pipe and welded on Chrome tips. He did the job in 3 hours flat and did it with a smile. He did originally want me to replace the mufflers themselves, saying they might be rusted, but wanted to get it up on the lift to make sure.. either ways, he told me, "We don't charge you for stuff you don't need over here :-)"

A Before and After Pic.

Before (Click to expand) - - - - - After (Click to expand)

Anyone who wants a good job done, for a great price and with a smile, visit Mr. Ed's. I'd definitely recommend him. Contact and location below.

Website : http://www.mredsmuffler.com/
Location : 23910 S Darrigo Way, Tracy, CA 95304

Cheers all, and a very Happy 4th of July !

Random Tracy Roadster...

2007-06-25T15:41:00.000-07:00

Summer time is Driving time in Tracy...
(..and for that matter, everywhere else in Sunny California)

I see some really nice Hot rods and Classic cars on Tracy streets from time to time. Infact nearly every second house I see, (when their garages are open) seem to conceal some 4-wheeled treasure or the other.

I saw this Hot Rod yesterday. Notice how the engine is wide open. This guy was really letting her rip and enjoying himself. Kudos to him (whomever he may be) for the hard work put in.
(click to enlarge)
>> >>

I also saw a beautiful Orange early 70's charger a couple weeks ago, (Truly beautiful) but I didn't have my camera at the time. I did however find some pics from the internet to show you what I mean
:-)
(click to enlarge)

Does Tracy have any local classic car clubs ? Or do I have to wait till august for the Glass on the Grass show (or the tracy classic car show, I think) to find out ?
:-)

Tanker Truck Stalker !

2007-06-19T11:28:00.000-07:00

Trailing a Tanker truck...

Ever followed a Gas Tanker truck ? The ones with the polished chrome like tankers ? It's like driving with a big oval mirror in front of you. haha.. Really a nice experience.. I followed one intentionally for about 20 miles on 580 today morning.... It was slower than the other lanes, but very entertaining. Wish I was driving my corvette, it would have looked better in the reflective mirror like surface.

See?

(Click to expand)

Under a bridge (Click to expand)

(Click to expand)

Off with your Nails !!!

2007-06-09T10:18:00.001-07:00

Ok, so my cat (Ramses. Russian Blue breed) has gotten so used to the new house, that he has declared it his domain and (like batman) seeks out the highest vantage points of the house and somehow perches himself there to score a birds eye view of us humans ! In his quest to scale these heights he did what any cat would do.. climb the walls and leap across open spaces to get there... in the process leaving one or two scratch marks on the wall and the furniture thereby freaking my wife out. So here we are trying to cut his sharp claws. Took a few pics. How many of you guys have cats or dogs ?

Perched up on the ledge. (click to enlarge)

He's not really happy about this nail cutting thing..
(click to enlarge)

Posing with his lion. (click to enlarge)

Not a very happy Kitty... (click to enlarge)

.

Home on a truck !

2007-06-06T15:40:00.000-07:00

Through my morning windscreen.

Driving to work today, just like any other day, saw a couple of trucks with "Caution: Oversize Load" signs on them, with pickup safety escorts. So someone is getting a house delivered to their land today in 2 pieces (2 wide bed trucks). Probably a 1000sq ft. house. Always wondered what it would be like, getting a house delivered on a truck to my lot and setting it up.

Truth be told, I was in half a mind to buy a plot of land in Livermore when I was in my home hunting phase and build a modular home on it...

Good thing I found Tracy. Now I can focus on my Landscaping instead. lol.

Took a few pics as usual.

:-)

Tracy Corvettes GTG.

2007-05-29T11:10:00.000-07:00

Tracy Corvettes Memorial Day weekend Get-together.

Joined up with the local Corvette Enthusiasts on Friday night for a burger at Wally's (108 E. 11th St., Tracy). I used to be an IN-n-Out Fan, but these Wally Burgers are really something.

They have this 3 POUND Cheeseburger that you have got to try out sometime ! I'm serious, the hamburger patty itself is One-and-a-Quarter Pounds. Really something. Take your Cholesterol meds along.. lol.

Here are a few pics (Courtesy Chuck).
It being Memorial day weekend and all, there were far fewer people than would normally be expected.

=======================================

My '77 Vette (left) with My Neighbour Ken's '72 Vette. (right)
(Click to Enlarge)

=======================================

Ken's '72 bumper Vette. (Click to Enlarge)

=======================================

Mark and his wife drove to Tracy from Ripon
in their '91 Red C4. It was immaculate.
(Click to Enlarge)

=======================================

My other neighbour Ted's Yellow 2000 Vette.
(With Nitrous Oxide Kit, loud as hell)
(Click to Enlarge)

=======================================

Lucette (Red C6) and her husbands C6 vettes
Her husband's car is the Black C6 Z06.
The C5 in the Background (Left) is Auburnsky's
(Click to Enlarge)

=======================================

Fun times !

Classic Cars in Santa Clara.

2007-05-22T12:01:00.000-07:00

I always say,
"Anyone can write a check and buy a new car from a showroom, but it takes a special soul to restore and nurture a classic"

Summer is here and there are classic car get togethers everywhere. Usually in Santa Clara, classic car owners meet in the evenings every wednesday near Mervyns. They play 50s and 60s rock and roll on loudspeakers, lending a sort of nostalgic charm to the gathering. Thought I'd share a few photos I took of a recent classic car get together in Santa Clara. Yes I was there with my shiny little corvette.

By the way, I missed the Tracy Classic Car show this year. :-(
Does anyone have pictures I could borrow to put up here ?
I would include the names of the photographers with the pictures :-)

Picture of my '77 vette at the gtg in Santa Clara.
It's the black one next to the Burgundy C2 Corvette
(Click to expand)

Pictures of other Classic cars at the gtg in Santa Clara.
(Click to expand)

Old cars are just so stirring...Why ?

Because the very concept of caring for something that is rare and delicate and keeping it alive, is to help it cheat death. Saving a piece of history who's time is supposed to have come and gone and should be relegated to the junk yard, but is not, is in my opinion noble. These are timepieces, these are mirrors into the past, these are time machines.

-ACP

:-)

Bikers on Hwy 680

2007-05-22T11:45:00.000-07:00

Sons of California.
While driving with the wife to San jose last saturday (19th May) about 20 bikes rumbled past us. Looked like a local motorcycle club. They were a very disciplined group of riders. Taking at the most 2 lanes and keeping placement and riding protocol. They all wore the same jackets with a leather patch on each saying "Sons of California".
Wife won't let me get a bike. :(

Here are a couple of pics. Good thing I always keep my camera handy in the car.. :-)

I went home and researched the 'sons of california', seems they have a website up. check it out
www.sonsofcaliforniamc.com

btw, we reached San Jose in 40 minutes flat from Tracy.

$8000 for concrete ??? Are you kidding me ??

2007-05-11T12:12:00.000-07:00

Just got a few estimates for some landscaping for my yard.

Now I have nothing against contractors making a living. God knows they do great work and are licensed and all that, plus they have to fight the fight against illegal immigration more than some other professions I know, because they (illegals) undercut their prices so drastically. But come on for God's sake !! $8000 to put down concrete ??? sheesh !!! And that doesn't include any any tile work or anything. Just Concrete and sod.

Here's the background... 3000sq ft back yard.. clean and empty. No landscaping done on it so far whatsoever. I want to put in circular slabs of concrete in a few specific places and cover the rest with sod and a sprinkler system. The Contractor said he would need to till the entire yard and then compact it and the labour would be about 60% of the cost. That's just nuts !!! Plus as always I always have known contractors to underestimate and then later add on stuff and go over budget.

Am I being unreasonable or is he over-quoting me ??
Should I just rent the compactor and the tiller from Home Depot and do it myself ?
Maybe get a non-licensed person to do the concrete ?

Please give me any advice you may have
(email me - e.tarkovski@gmail.com)

Here is what my lawn currently looks like. (Click to view detail)

Here is a computer design I did myself of what I want it to be.
The concrete would be where the tiled circles are in the diagram.
The big rectangle already exists (Click to view detail)

Busy Busy Weekend !

2007-05-07T14:35:00.000-07:00

Pride of home ownership has really driven my energy levels up
(and my libido too , I might add) ;-)
This was a busy busy weekend for me. It is really surprising what you can do if you are geared up and plan a 'to-do' list (Plus wake up a little early). Here is a list of stuff I did this weekend.

Drove to Manteca and returned the outdoor lanterns I bought last month, exchanged them for non-motion sensor ones.
Bought a 8x10 foot metal shed. Drove to Home Depot, loaded onto truck, drove home, loaded into garage.
Installed 2 Outdoor Lanterns on either side of the garage (Electrical work, ladder, yadda yadda..)
Went grocery shopping to Costco with my significant other (Wife)
Mowed the lawn and fertilized.
Trimmed edges of lawn (with weed whacker.. My favourite tool and weapon :p)
Drove to OSH, bought lamp shade, wires, plugs, bulbs and stud detector.
Installed light above pool table.
Installed floodlight above Corvette, with remote control..
Got paint swatches from Home Depot, argued with wife for 2 hours about what walls should be what color.. Still no conclusion...
Washed and dried corvette :-)
Put up some memorabilia and hung pics on the wall above car..
Played 2 games of pool.
Saw SpiderMan 3 with wife at Cinemax, Tracy
Went to Mancini's Sleepworld 'Sale', bought a queen size bed and mattress and boxspring.
Worked from home sunday evening for about 2 hours. (need to get geared up for Monday right?)

===============================================

Pic of New Outdoor Lantern. (Point #3)
(Click to view detail)

===============================================

Pic of Pool Table with New lamp. (Point #8)
(Click to view detail)

===============================================

Pics of Vette & Memorabilia (Point #11 & 12)
(Click to view detail)

===============================================

Pic of my Manicured front Lawn. (Point #5 & 6)
(Click to view detail)

Whew... Real busy weekend...

Pool Rules !

2007-04-13T11:20:00.000-07:00

Pool Shark comin through !!!
:-D

I decided a couple weeks ago to convert one garage of my 3 car garage into a Billiard/Pool/Game room. So I started by laying plaster and texture on the drywall. That was quite a task and I had to hire a day worker (From outside Home Depot) to help out. After that I chose the colors, A Mustard yellow for opposing walls and a Rich Burgundy for the Game room side (and white for ceiling). Check out the Before and After pics below.

I decided to do this because I recently found a gem of a pool table on Craigslist.org. (One of those rare distress sales) Seller was leaving town for another state and had no takers for his $1200 Brunswick Table (It would cost him more than that to ship it). I wanted this table !!! The only problem was, that it was gathering dust in his game room way up in Santa Rosa (That is about 2+ Hours away from Tracy, up in the North Bay). He was desperate to sell and had no takers, so he was literally giving it away for free, or best offer (He had to have it out of the house in 2 days). So I hired an installation guy to come with me to see the table, 'look under the hood' and give it a thumbs up and then to disassemble it and re-assemble it in my home for the princely sum of $300 (Still a pretty sweet deal). The seller said to give him whatever I wanted, he just wanted it gone !! (So I gave him $200). AND HE ACCEPTED !!!!! :-p

So there you have it, an expensive pool table for little or nothing, plus the cost of shipping and setup - $500 total. Not too shabby for a game table that retails for nearly $2000.

Anyways I had it set up in my game room and will put up the pendant lights above it this weekend. I also put up one of my favourite paintings (Linnea Pergola - The Hills of San Francisco). I will scour Craigslist for a free area rug to put under the table and perhaps a bar stool or two and it will be all set !!

I love Craigslist :)

BEFORE and AFTER pics

A really nice print of Linnea Pergola's - Hills of San Francisco.

Lord I'm coming home...

2007-03-22T16:51:00.000-07:00

My Daily commute from Work (San Jose) back to Tracy !

Maybe it is the angle of the sun at this time of the year, or maybe just because it is a clear day, but by God, we live in such a beautiful part of the country. The green rolling hills, the wide highways, the blue skies and pleasant sunshine... This is what struck me about the pictures I took on the way home, especially those near the Altamont Pass and the scene off Highway 680 North just around Fremont. Very beautiful.

I am beginning to enjoy my drive home every day from San Jose to Tracy ! I find myself actually looking around more at the hills, (the spring colors), and less at the ugly traffic. Going home is a good thing, no matter how far I have to go to get there.

I have as usual braved the speed of the open road (Today traffic was close to non-existent) with one hand on the steering wheel and the other clutching the plunger on my ancient camera... enjoy the pictures, perhaps many of you Tracy residents see this every day of your life but are too tired or concentrating on the road too much to take in the beauty of the hills.. (in an effort to stay alive).. Some peripheral scenes may look familiar.

Click here to view videos of the commute.

~~~

We start our journey on Montague North heading towards the 680 Ramp. You need to cross 880 first. The second picture is just after we cross 880, before we get to Great Mall Parkway.

(click image for more detail)

~~~

After we cross the Great Mall Pkwy, We get to the 680 Exit. Take 680 North to Sacramento(click image for more detail)

~~~

The most Beautiful sight !
This stretch of highway is very scenic because of the lovely hills in the background. This is on the Milpitas to Fremont stretch of road. There is this one house I always look at when passing by, you can see it on the hill-top (4th picture). What a great view of Silicon Valley he must have. It is the white one at the top of the hill. It really took my breath away. The photo really doesn't do it justice.

(click image for more detail)

~~~

Washington Blvd exit.
This was a scary picture to take.
I couldn't slow down and folks were going at a standard 70mph(click image for more detail)

~~~

Now come all the Fremont Exits.
The Mission Blvd Exit is usually crowded, but not so much today. I left work at 6:25 pm, so it was still bright out (days last longer at this time of the year thank god) The green hills look so beautiful, I really can't describe them beyond that, without sounding vulgar. :-)

(click image for more detail)

~~~

After Sunol comes a few Pleasanton exits
(The evening cloud color in these pictures remind me of Vanilla sky)(click image for more detail)

~~~

Here is the stretch of highway between Pleasanton and the 580/680 Junction. Long straight road, lots of Highway Police lurking. Careful of your speed here.(click image for more detail)

~~~

Next Exit Tracy (before the 580/680 Junction at Dublin)(click image for more detail)

~~~

Here at the 680/580 Junction, I take the Tracy exit.
It is the half-way point of the journey.(click image for more detail)

~~~

Usually there is a Killer Traffic Jam right here (Santa Rita Rd), fortunately today, it is about 7:00pm as I pass Oracle, so no traffic jam, yay ! Also to my Left you can see the Regal IMAX cinema.(click image for more detail)

~~~

From Livermore driving up the Altamont Pass up-slope.(click image for more detail)

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Altamont Pass road. Nearly there, I love this part of the trip.
In the First picture you will notice a Large Christian Cross cut into the Hillside.
When it gets dark sometimes the edges light up (it has powered lights along the edges)(click image for more detail)

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The Gateway to Tracy
When I see this Arch I know I have reached Tracy... I think of it as the "Gateway to Tracy", even though it is just a bridge with a rail track passing over it.(click image for more detail)

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Mountain House exit and Defence Depot Exit, nearly there...(click image for more detail)

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Home at last!
The 11th Street 'City of Tracy Fountain'.
And don't forget, the nice ornamental street lights.
The last picture is the Intersection of '11th and Corral Hollow'
I'll be home in 5 minutes... :-)(click image for more detail)

It took me exactly 54 minutes to reach home today.
I was so excited with all my photos, that I came home and started uploading them straight away. Took me a whole hour.. haha!!I will bid you adieu for now... it is 9:30 pm, dark, my wife thinks I am nuts and my dinner is getting cold..

Good night and sweet dreams.
Click here to view videos of the commute.

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Terminator of the weeds !!!

2007-03-19T11:47:00.000-07:00

I spent half my weekend playing TERMINATOR in my back yard. I traded my Dick Tracy mask for my Axe Wielding Barbarian getup.

So, I bought one of those weed whackers and 'went to the mattresses' on my weed infested back lawn. I started by putting the safety guard on the weed whacker, but then decided that it was going too slow.., so I removed the guard and let the weedster rip with about 8 inches of cord. I was splattered with chlorophyll, sap and plant matter as the leaves and weeds exploded in sprays of green (see pics of before and after below)

I originally wanted to take a picture of myself destroying the yard, but unlike driving a car and taking photos, I wouldn't recommend or even try taking a picture with one hand while holding a rotating blade spinning at about 5000+ rpms, so I drew myself instead :-)

Here's a sketch I made of what I looked like when in the heat of battle !!!

Some may recognize him as Slaine the Barbarian from 2000AD comics.
(Yes I drew it myself and added the green on computer after I scanned it)

Finally I got my yard to look semi decent and now I am planning to landscape it beautifully with a barbecue area, cypress trees and a gazebo. I got about 3000 sq ft, so I am going to have fun doing this.. I spent part of Sunday spraying the entire place with about 2 gallons of Roundup.

BEFORE and AFTER (back)

BEFORE and AFTER (side)

Not bad for a novice barbarian !
:-)

Take a Ride with me !

2007-03-08T15:22:00.001-08:00

My Daily Commute from Tracy to San Jose :-)

Ok now before I write this I just wanted to share the process of taking these photos. I took them driving at close to 70-75 miles an hour on the 580/680 freeways. Yes that's right, one hand on the steering wheel and one hand clutching the camera. I have this really old PENTAX digital camera with no steady shot or sports mode, so some pics might be blurry. Needless to say, it was pretty scary at times and I really pissed off this guy driving behind me in a Dodge RAM3500 because at one point I was weaving a little on the Altamont Pass road. It is dangerous and I wouldn't recommend it. (Kids, don't try this at home, or out of it) Anyways I survived and have compiled a lot of pictures showing you what the drive from Tracy to San Jose (where I work) can be like...

Google Map (For indicative purposes only)

I Left home at 9:30 AM and reached work at 10:40. It took me one hour and 10 minutes. It is usually a 45 minute drive, but only when there are no stops in traffic flow (Unlike today). I avoid rush hour as much as possible, because EVERYONE (and I mean half the population of the Bay Area) is trying to get to work at the same time and you might be in for a 2 hour drive if things get bad (as in 'parking lot' trafffic jam). The trick is to leave home at 9:30 AM or slightly after it, so that the commute is not too bad..

Click here to view videos of the commute.

The first thing I learned is that you need a dependable car. Very often I see these old cars (usually 12 years or older) pulled over to the side of the road. Usually they break down or run out of gas. Which is why the first order of the day is to fill about $10 worth of gas (per round trip) in my trusty little Volkswagen. It is a very sturdy car and gives me great mileage (20-24 city, 30 highway). Ofcourse you could always buy a Camry, Accord, Civic, Prius or Corolla, nothing wrong with them at all. (You might even get better mileage)
(click image for more detail)

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Eleventh Street leading up to the 205 highway is extremely pretty and has broad open streets with very ornamental street lamps (that was the first thing I noticed when I drove into Tracy for the first time).
(click image for more detail)

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A little bridge flies you over 205 and merges into 205-West and your journey begins...
(click image for more detail)

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Mountain House is a planned community located in unincorporated San Joaquin County, approximately 5 miles northwest of the City of Tracy. The community has an approximate population of 3,000 people and that's all I know about that for now.. have never been there.. I might just make a detour someday just to see what all the fuss is about.. They don't seem to have much infrastructure yet.
I took this one pic after I passed a Carrier loaded with Toyota Priuses (?). Looks like the commuters these days love em. Btw, The Chevy VOLT is supposed to be a new electric car releasing soon.., it looks really cool. Hope to get one when it does come out..
(click image for more detail)

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Here are a few views I snapped just before the Altamont Pass. When this highway is empty, I really like driving on it. Notice the Windmills all along the periphery of the photos, some people think they are an eyesore, but I think they are just beautiful... They are so neat and clean and hell, they even provide electricity. Truth be told I don't like the traditional windmills (like the farm ones, or the dutch windmills) but these white ones are elegant and look like rows of lilly white flowers from afar. Oh and I like cows ! (and NO I am not gay) :-)
I did grow up on a farm though...
(click images for more detail)

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The Altamont Pass is gorgeous to me because you can see folks driving in the opposite direction (into tracy) but they are nearly a mile away. The view is really breathtaking. I wish I could actually stop and sit on the hillside and watch the cars go by.. (hmm.. sounds like a song or something).Oh by the way, I nearly lost control of my car trying to take the next 2 pictures. You can see I nearly drove off the yellow line... That was frightening :-p(click images for more detail)

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You can see Livermore from this downward slope. The next exit after the slope would be Vasco Rd (That Takes you to Brentwood). After that you have a few more Livermore Exits like Portola, Livermore and Airway.. now THIS is where the trouble starts traffic wise... (usually)
(click images for more detail)

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Welcome to Santa Rita Rd. Now depending on whether or not you are spiritual, this stretch of road right till the 580/680 Junction can literally be hell. (You're supposed to pray to Santa Rita that you don't have to wait too long). Luckily I have never waited for more than 10 minutes, but remember to leave home later to avoid the jams here... The Trucks make it even worse, but hell they gotta earn a living too right ? Driving a truck can't be much fun in this traffic. (I wouldn't want to be in the truckers shoes). (click images for more detail)

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After a very minor 5 minute jam (courtesy of Saint Rita), I reached the 580/680 Junction and took the road to San Jose. This signifies the half-way point of my daily commute. Now the traffic tends to be a bit faster all the way down to Milpitas. Don't forget your tinted eyewear (shades that is..)... the sun shines directly into your face (Which explains the silhouetted pictures from this point on) (click images for more detail)

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The 580/680 junction is in Dublin and once on 680 you drive through Pleasanton, Fremont, Sunol, till you reach Milpitas. The drive is Very Scenic. Took a picture of this police cruiser waiting for the occasional idiot to zoom past the cone zone.. :-p (gulp)(click images for more detail)

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A few more pics whilst breezing through Fremont (Mission Exit to 880 would be here). I pass Mission Blvd, then Automall Pkwy. Traffic is now non existent and the drive is very smooth. Remember... Leave late, resist the temptation to get stuck in traffic :)(click images for more detail)

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Once I see and cross the Jacklin rd exit, I know I am just a few miles from work and breathe a sigh of relief. I take the Montague Expressway exit. Last month this time, Montague expressway was all I had to travel on to work and back (San Tomas / Montague). Now of course being in Tracy puts a whole new map route on the table. (click images for more detail)

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Ah work at last... Now to earn my daily bread. (click images for more detail)

Thanks for taking this journey with me. I will post another perhaps of the drive to Tracy. Please feel free to comment or email me with any extra tips I may have missed out on...

That's it... for today.

Click here to view videos of the commute.

Thinking out of the box !!!

2007-03-06T09:53:00.000-08:00

Silly Title, I know. It has nothing to do with innovation or anything, it just popped into my head. And I, being an individual suffering from verbal diarrhea, feel compelled to either say it out loud or put it down on paper. (or blog). Also, over the past 2 weeks I have had precious little sleep. I have made about 7-8 round-trips between Tracy and San Jose in the last weekend alone. (yes that is 4 round trips a day !!). Saturday night I came home and collapsed on the bed for lack of a single non-aching muscle to stand on.

But I feel I digress.

The wife and I are still living out of boxes and thinking out of boxes (past 1 week). Packing and Moving boxes I mean. My garage is filled with them, My living room is filled with them and other parts of the house are littered with them too. Moving to a new house is just half the job done. Unpacking and getting back to a sense of normalcy is the other 50%. Still living on plastic furniture.

Just this morning I couldn't find a jacket I wear to work sometimes and spent the better part of 20 minutes rummaging through some large U-Haul boxes filled with clothes.

I plan on writing something more substantial and with a lot more pictures in my next post. For now, this is all I can do..(Waiting for my DSL connection to kick in)

Many thanks to the warm Tracy resident who took the time to welcome me to town (whilst walking his little dog) and promised me a few free tickets for the ACE train. I like this neighbourhood already...

Here's a silhouette picture I took of my Significant Other
looking down from the landing at the top of the stairs

A Picture of my New Home !

2007-02-16T21:46:00.000-08:00

Just thought I'd post a picture of my New Home !

Here it is... (click for larger pic)
1800+sq.ft, 2 story, with fireplaces, 3 car garage, 4bed, 3bath
and a 6000 sq.ft lot (3000 of which is backyard)

It is less than 5 years old and is going to be fun to decorate internally and externally (landscaping). My Significant other has already chosen nearly every element of our new furniture wish list. I just have to fork over the checks from time to time.. haha. But I really don't mind. She is very good at decorating and matching colors and fabrics and all that jazz. She does it tastefully and keeps a great home.

This Valentines day I couldn't afford to take my wife out to dinner or get her a fancy arrangement of flowers or jewellery. Mainly because I was scraping all the money I could muster into my savings account during escrow and saving all the rest to furnish the place. And God bless her, she didn't mind it at all. So we spent 14th February evening on plastic chairs eating Pizza and drinking champagne. (in our San Jose apartment.. we have sold all our current furniture) We watched Cold mountain on DVD. Believe you me, it was (in my book) a really nice Valentines day.

Yesterday (15th Feb) , I presented my wife her valentines day gift. A small felt blue jewellery box with the keys to our new home in it. Uh-huh, yeah, corny, I know.. but you had to be there... :)

Now THAT's a valentine day present !! :-)

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Hey by the way, is anyone in Tracy selling their Pool table ? I need one for my game room !
email me.

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Why did I move to Tracy ? - Part 2

2007-02-13T16:15:00.000-08:00

Read Part - 1 of this 'click here'

...continued from Part - 1

...so I told my colleagues that I bought a new house. After the "Wow, Congratulations" and the pats on the back, came the usual question.

"Where did you buy your house?"

"Tracy" I reply with a smile, knowing what was to come next.

"TRACY ?? Good God, you're crazy !!" they all say, "how will you commute all that distance ?"

Now I launch into my standard sales pitch for Tracy... and it goes something like this.

Tracy is a family oriented town.
Tracy is very safe and very quiet and the houses are very new.
Value for money ($ for house) is so much better. (I own a 1800sq.ft 2 story house in Tracy with fireplaces, 3 car garage, 4bed, 3bath and a 6000 sq.ft yard... beat that for $500k).
Appreciation may be slower than the bay area, but it does appreciate. (My insurance agent bought a home in Tracy in 2003 for $380k , it is now worth $515k. So don't tell me there is no appreciation.
Tracy has all the major outlets that all other Bay Area cities have for example : SEARS, Marshalls, Safeway, Albertsons, ROSS, Grocery Outlets, JC Penny, COSTCO, Home Depot, Best Buy, Cost Plus, Barnes&Noble, TARGET, OSH, Rite Aid etc etc etc... the list can go on and on... YES it is all there...
The schools in Tracy are good. My home is close to the Jefferson School district. THey have a K-8 school just a minute from my house.

Screenshot from Google Maps (For indicative purpose only)

You see like so many people, my friends and colleagues look at the map of the bay area and see Tracy and think "Hey that's too far". But it really isn't. The distance from my office in San Jose and my home in Tracy is exactly 52.6 miles (yes I set the trip meter in my car).

The distance from My office to Gilroy is 40 miles
The distance from My office to San Francisco Center is 48 miles
The distance from My office to Salinas is 60 miles
The distance from my office to San Ramon is 36 miles
The distance from my office to Walnut Creek is 46 miles

And I have colleagues and friends living in all the above areas. They all drive to work in San Jose / Santa Clara.

So if you think about it, driving for 10 minutes more and 10 miles more to reach Tracy is NOT a big deal is it ? It just takes a little education for someone to see that it is not some small town with farms, but one that has grown from about 35,000 to over 80,000+ people in just a few years. And it will keep growing. See, people might not want to drive to Modesto or Manteca or Stockton from the Bay area as a daily commute (Though there are some that do), but Tracy is not that far.
I am not saying that the traffic isn't bad, it can be terrible sometimes. There is always atleast a 10-15 minute traffic jam after the 680/580 junction, but after that it gets bearable. The key is to skip the rush hour by about 20 minutes if you want to drive it. (starting at 9-9.15am from home and leaving work by about 6:30-7pm to head back)

ANOTHER PLUS !!!
Did you know that there is a train that runs from Stockton to San Jose every day , many times a day, to and fro ?? Yes, It is called the ACE (Altamont Commuter Express) and it picks you up from Tracy and drops you off at Great America, Santa Clara, and San Jose (Next to Stevens Creek) The train ride lasts around one hour and they have wireless access onboard, so you can get access to office emails on the way to and from work. (buy a laptop with wireless)

see more on the ACE train here: http://www.acerail.com/
See the Map of stations here:
http://www.acerail.com/schedules/route-map.htm

I will upload some pics of my daily commute in my next post.

Why did I move to Tracy ? - Part 1

2007-02-13T11:51:00.000-08:00

Short Answer:
Value for money and Quality of Life. :-)

Long Answer:

Having lived in the Bay area for about 4 years now it has always annoyed me that in order to own a semi decent hovel in the San Jose / Santa Clara / Silicon Valley area, you either have to be a millionaire, or have a really high salary (I'm talking $120,000+ a year). Now, there are many I know who do have salaries like this and many are my colleagues. But for the vast majority, owning a home in the Bay area / Silicon Valley area has been close to impossible for the last 4 years.

Now granted, many of my friends and colleagues bought houses in the internet/tech boom bubble time (1997-2001) and a few even managed to buy homes in the couple years after that. In 2003-2004 the market skyrocketed and landed them over $100,000+ in equity in the short span of a year or less. The current price of a decent single story 3/4 bedroom, 2 garage , 1500 +/- sq. foot home in the santa clara area is over $800,000. The nicer ones go for much much more.... That is the barrier to entry right there for over 90% of wannabe home owners that I know of.

Now granted, Silicon Valley is the place to be and the place to own a home, since the school districts and the shopping and nearly everything is a stones throw away. Plus all the good jobs are right here in the top tech companies and startups. But what if you fell into the "I cannot afford a nice home on my salary" category ? Are you doomed to renting a sardine can of an apartment for the rest of your days ? Or do you want to spend over $500,000 (That's half a million dollars ... gulp!) on a 1000 sq foot apartment that honestly in any other part of the country would go for 100,000 or less... Let's face it.. the apartments are crappy and small, you end up paying about $3000 a month on Mortgage (that's interest only) ... PLUS you have to endure a $200+ HOA (home owners association) fee ... which is honestly a waste of good money. (I will leave my opinions about home owners associations and their fees for another rant blog.)

So let me take a deep breath...

Why would I want to spend $3000 of my hard earned money and another $200+ on an HOA and still live in an apartment that I could honestly rent for less than half of the mortgage. The answer is "investment". I guess the house/apartment value increases much faster in the bay area than any other part.

But is that enough ?

I don't know about you, but where I grew up, we had farms and large open spaces and wind to breathe and a house that was not large, but spacious and comfortable. So I finally decided that's what I want. Fremont, Livermore, San Ramon, Pleasanton, Dublin and the surrounding areas are still more than half a million for even a good townhome. But travel 20 minutes east and you come to this lovely city called Tracy, where at the time of writing this, had a huge inventory of new/semi new homes at unbelievable prices (Mainly due to the real-estate correction and what some call the housing bubble pop in effect).

It could be considered the suburbs of the Bay area. Aah Suburbia. If you dont mind driving a little or even taking a train, you can live in pure luxury !!! Now if you work as hard as I do for your money and plan on staying in california long term... THIS is where you go !

Fact: Look at graphs available all over the net, housing prices in California never go down. They may crest and trough or slightly dip from time to time, but if you have a family and are going to make a long term committment to living life in comfort, Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you Tracy !

Commute be damned. I would rather live in luxury than suffer for the same price. To end this post I would like to show you two pictures that actually made up my mind for me. Now before you say that I am not comparing apples to apples, please note that the house I found in Santa Clara (Bay Area) was the cheapest one available, there were no single family houses cheaper than that at the time of writing this. In comparison the one in Tracy is median. There are cheaper ones with the same value for money.

Which would you rather live in with your family ?

Click image for expanded view

Fact: In California you cannot lose money in real estate long term.
Think about that.

Continued in Part - 2...