Refinishing a Metal Lamp

"Refinishing a metal lamp", this was the google search that I did to find out how to refinish an old tarnished metal lamp that I got at a thrift store.  I realize now that I should have done my search with "how to tell if metal is plated", because all of the refinishing hits were about people who wanted to paint over their metal!   

I learned that to test to see if brass is plated, you use a magnet.  If it is magnetic, then the metal is plated!   

My lamp in the title photo turned out to be solid brass (non magnetic), so I used a slushee of salt and vinegar, some old microfiber cloths and toothbrushes, and a lot of elbow grease to remove the tarnish.  To finish it off and add luster, I polished my lamp with brasso (make sure to use it outside or in a well ventilated area, because it has a strong ammonia smell).

i can't wait for my next "find" and I'll make sure to carry a little magnet with me :) 

 

Witness Trees

Hiking through Manassas National Battlefield Park, I came across a wooden sign that had "Witness Tree" carved into it.  Wondering how the park service decided which trees had been there during the civil war, I googled witness tree:)

The witness tree identification at Manassas was part of a Girl Scout Gold award project.  

The trees must be more than 150 years old, and according to the nps.gov website, they were located using historic maps and photos.  Aerial photography and increment boring sample collections were also utilizing to help with identification.

Whenever I see one of the signs, it causes me to stop and reflect about where I am and what happened on this land so long ago.  I even find myself looking high, wondering if there's might be evidence of the war visible in the bark.  Then I look low, knowing the shade and protection that must have been given during those two summer battles at Manassas.

 

Exploring Culver City

Culver City is a cute little city to the west of Los Angeles that is close to the beach and to the airport.  It is home to Sony Picture studios, it is well cared for, it has beautiful weather, and Culver City has a great walkable downtown.  There are many cafes and restaurants, a movie theater, and a Trader Joes in the downtown area (there is a large parking garage next to TJs...the movie theater validated our parking..I don't think that anyone else does)

The odd thing about this downtown is that there aren't many "shops".   Two thrift shops, a menswear store, and a gift shop that was closed are all that I remember. 

I recommend the Public School restaurant and Cafe Vida in the downtown area.  Also, The Starbucks had a very nice outdoor seating area:)

4 day cross country road trip

This wasn't a sight seeing trip.  This was a got to get to California before my daughter starts her internship trip.  I am happy to report that we are still friends after four (650+ miles) days of driving along I-40!

  • Day 1- Washington DC to Nashville, TN
  • Day 2-Nashville to Oklahoma City, OK
  • Day 3-Oklahoma City to Gallup, NM
  • Day 4-Gallup to Los Angeles, CA.  

We left each day by 6:30am and arrived by late afternoon.

I was glad that we booked hotels on the west side of Nashville and Oklahoma City, because we avoided rush hour traffic going into the city in the morning.

I also recommend that you check for restaurants near the hotel...the last thing I want to do is drive to dinner after driving all day. 

Gallup was a little scary as it seems to have a problem with alcoholism or homelessness.  The hotels have fences around their parking lots and I felt like I needed to be on my guard walking across the parking lot to the Walmart. 

I was happily surprised  that we had good cell service for most of the trip!  So, we were able to use waze.

 

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Road trip to Rochester in the Tesla

As you may or may not know, a journey in a Tesla isn't your quick fill it up, grab some fast food to eat in the car, and get there as fast as you can trip.  It forces one to take the breaks that should be taken on a long road trip and makes for a much more pleasant experience!

These are the charging stations that we stopped at: 

  •  Harrisburg,PA- The supercharger (SC) is located in the parking lot of a large shopping plaza.  There are multiple food options, including a great Waffle House that is a short walk across the street.
  • Binghamton, NY- The SC is in the parking lot of The Spot Restaurant-the food was good, a lot of locals, and it looks like it is open from 5am to 11pm.
  • Syracuse, NY- The SC is located in a Holiday Inn parking lot.  There are restrooms right inside of the hotel doors closest to the chargers and there is a 24 hour pharmacy (Kinney Drugs) at the far end of the parking lot.
  • There are no super chargers in Rochester, NY. We used the ChargePoint charger in the Court Street garage while having dinner downtown at Dinosaur BBQ.   

Virginia Apple Picking Season has Begun!

It was a beautiful day for apple picking in the Virginia countryside.  My favorite u-pick your own place is Hartland Orchards in Markham.  Pack a picnic, enjoy the outdoors, and when you get home with all of those apples try the apple cobbler recipe from Ina Garten!

Polaris

Michael and I attended a United Airlines reception at Dulles Airport last night highlighting their new Polaris business class product offering.  

Plush new linens.  

Plush new linens.  

Bonus goodie bag when we left had one of the blankets in it. Perfect for colder nights watching a movie at home.