My first Iridium Photo

This is my first pretty good Iridium satellite photo. I've been meaning to try and get one of these ever since there were two that flared over MSP at almost exactly the same time back last winter. My aim was a little off for this one, as it's towards the top of the frame, but hey, I got it. Can't get a satellite photo sitting on the couch. BTW this photo will be about 20 minutes old as of posting.

Betty's got her groove back (her lighting groove)

Betty, my 2001 Buick Regal is on her way to getting her lighting groove back! For quite a few month's, half of her trunk running lights were out. Then the other day her rear passenger turn signal also went out.

I went to Checker yesterday and loaded up on new light bulbs for her. I also made arrangements to have her serpentine belt and tie rod ends replaced next week to, but that's a different story.

Buick did a commendable job of making the lights replacable my an average Joe like me. The tail lights were held on by three large plastic wing nuts. It took a couple of tries to get the bulb in the right way so that the bright light came on when you hit the brakes and the dimmer light came on for the turn signal.

The lights on the trunk lid were also easily replaced. Seven of the eight wing nuts came off pretty easily. The last one was tucked in behind the emergency escape handle on the trunk lid, and took a little convincing to come off. The bulbs for those are those same as those for the license plate light, which I also intended to replace. The license plate light will have to wait, as I used the bulbs for those to replace the lid lights. There is still one bulb working for the plate, so I am not at risk of getting a ticket for that.

For my next project on her, I would like to see if I can get the Fog Lights going again. That may be a more involved project as I'm not sure if the bulbs are merely out or if there is some corrosion in the sockets or other problems.

What's going on here?

Hey, welcome to my blog. Make yourself comfortable. No, not that comfortable. This isn't one of those kinds of places. My camera is sitting next to the computer here, along with a huge stack of train, weather, and other cool pictures that may make it on here over time. Yes, that pile of lumber and foam over there will someday become my model railroad. You may even get to hear the gory details of it's creation on here. If it's a clear night, chances are I'll be in the back yard with my telescope trying to see what I can eek out of the city sky around here.

Don't worry, you'll see more of what's in here as I clean things up and get a posting