HO-scale models

Dear Bassa,

Per your request. I made these from scratch. They are made from balsa wood — light and sturdy — and in HO scale (1:87). Some people prefer basswood but it’s a much thicker wood (and therefore a little harder to do.) I just used a fine X-Acto blade and some Elmer’s Glue. My dad loved everything old and classic, including the railroads. He converted his 8-car garage (yup, 8 cars) into a giant model railroad set. He was the “engineer” and I was the “architect”. We built small towns here and there, nestled in the hills and valleys of his twelve train tracks.

I started making model buildings from scratch from a very young age. In the beginning, they were made from cardboard boxes. My window curtains were hand drawn with color pencils. Several years ago when I came home to pack up the house after my dad passed away, I found them in an old box. They had been lugged around several countries and were bent and misshapened, but he still kept them.

Anyway, here are the newer better balsa wood version. I took these photos for you while I wait for the boiling water that I just poured down my drain to unclog the clog that I created….

Which one do you like best?

Boraxo is not Borax

Or, what NOT to do at 12 a.m.

After I nominated wonderful bloggers last night for the Versatile Blogger Award, I decided to unclog my slow-draining drain. I could have waited until this morning, but I thought, “hmmmm, if I pour this stuff down the drain now, it will work its magic by the morning.”

It sure did!

I had read in the “Old Time Cleaners” (short little pamphlet I got with an organic gardening book), that if you pour 1/2 C. of Borax into the drain followed by slowly pouring in 2 C. of boiling water, it would be a sure-fire way of unclogging your drain.

I had gone to Ace Hardware yesterday to purchase some Borax. The nice ladies there said they don’t make Borax anymore, but they do have several big boxes of Boraxo around. So, although there is a picture of a hand (“powdered handsoap”), we both immediately focused on the phrase “safe for all pipes”.

I read the ingredients. Borax, soap, water, sodium chloride, glycerin…seem like all natural ingredients. And I didn’t want something caustic like lye down the drain. So after deliberation, I decided to get Boraxo. Never mind that it’s a gigantic box; I am sure I can use this for other applications.

(As I type this, “get rid of pests without pesticide”, and “DIY cleaning supplies”, and “13 natural rememdies for ant invasion”, pop up on my “Related Articles” panel.)

Anyway, I woke up this morning and my sink is completely clogged up. The Boraxo had turned into a fine gelatinous layer overnight. By gelatinous, I mean it feels like a thick flat jellyfish. I scooped up the whole thing with my bare hands (it did not break apart) and tossed it in the garbage.

Then I spent the next half hour (unsuccessfully) snaking out the drain pipe. It’s still clogged up and I am not sure what to do next. I am convinced that I am not the only person who has done this…please tell me I’m not. But I sure need help. Does anybody know? All suggestions, no matter how silly, are welcomed at this point.

My hands are soft, smooth, and above all, clean — just like the box promised.

 

https://loungelassie.wordpress.com