WILLY'S FACE LIFT - INSTALLMENT 14

Today was harder than expected.  The molding isn't as pretty as I was hoping but it is going to work well as far as protecting Willy's corners. Pamela is happy with it, so I'm happy too. Also it isn't as easy to work with as I had anticipated.  That's because it reacts quite a bit differently when you have the corners covered with butyl tape and the have two strips of butyl tape on the inside of the molding. I did end up with only two joints on each side, which is one per side less than anticipated.  Actually, with the weight of the molding, I overlapped instead of doing a joint. Figured that was safer. I do want it to look nice but the most important thing is that it protects the edges from water.  I'm using less molding than anticipated and a lot more butyl.  Here's a step-by-step.

STEP 1:  I started in the front.  Both of the front pieces were already shaped and there was no shaping to the piece going across the roof line. For the back I put the molding in place, using a couple of pieces of butyl like tape, and made any necessary cuts to create the curves.

Top front with butyl covering the seam

corner covered with butyl tape

 STEP 2:  I covered the seam where the side and front skin meets with butyl tape.  I worked it is so that it was very tight to the skin. Since the roof actually overlaps the side there was no seam to cover.

STEP 3:  After the butyl tape was in place and secure I put a strip of butyl tape on each leg of the molding.  I then carefully put the molding in place using any curves as my guide and pushed firmly or tapped lightly with a soft mallet. With that much butyl tape it isn't going anywhere.

STEP 4:  I secured the molding with 8 x 1" sheet metal screws every 2.5-3", a bit farther apart on the roof line because half of it is going to be under the roof sealer. I figured that I wasn't going to skimp on the screws. I bought 500 screws and will use all of them before I'm done.  On front and back I started at the top and worked  my way down. I used a soft

Butyl tape on inside of molding

Front corner finished

mallet any time I needed to tap the molding into place. This molding is very strong - after all it is made for the corners of a  pole bar - but it does bend very easily. A few times I hit a screw that was holding the skin to the wood. All that I needed to do was start again moving so little that you have to look to notice that there is a second hold. The unused hole is filled with butyl.

The reason that the molding didn't turn out as pretty (for lack of a better word) as I had envisioned was that the skin isn't flat. If you look at any of the pictures you can see the ridges and valleys. The screws pull  the molding tight to the skin. That's what you want.  The molding gives, which is good, but there is almost a dimpled effect because of the skin.

Back corner viewed from side

Back corner from rear

I am glad that we made the decision to try this very unorthodox method.  Most moldings attempt to cover the seam created by the joint of a front, back and side skin without you being aware of the molding. Some of it actually has plastic strips to cover the screws. The down side of this cosmetic approach is that there is no way it provides as much protection. Besides, Airstream has made an icon of its screws and rivets showing.

Next is to put a protective sealant along the roof molding. This helps keep the butyl clean and will provide an added water barrier. Some people who restore trailers put a sealant over all butyl to protect it and keep it from turning dark. After all the molding and edges have been finished I will coat the roof with a special trailer roof sealer.  I don't have the stats on the sealer right now, but I'll try to remember to post it in a future blog. There are a number of products out there, and most of them are adequate to good. We wanted to use the same product as Tim Heinz (a professional restoration expert in Panama Beach, FL. whom we know) but the only place to get it was in the deep south (not even Northern Alabama) and I couldn't find anywhere to purchase it on-line. I decided to use the product that a local Evansville shop uses.

After that the big job is going to be putting everything back together. We need to clean the window frames and put in new screen. Then there are the tail lights, water tank drain valve, water tank fill, and all of the other things we took off.  I did have a problem with the paint on the fenders, so we might be faced with buying new fenders.

We not going to be done before we go on our cruise, but we're going to be pretty close!  Every day I have gone to work on Willy has been somewhere between scary and terrifying.  But we have tried to do our homework and preparation and take our time.  I'm very pleased and must admit that - other than some periods of pure terror - I've really had fun.  








 

Statistical Generalization and the News Media

I must admit that this is far from the purview of this blog, but I am taking advantage of the fact that I have a blog that I can use as a soap box.  I can understand the advertising industry using poor statistics so they can sell an item.  Example - "4 out of 5 mothers said 'great'."  Of course they didn't mention that 3 of those 4 said "oh, great. Another stupid survey."  Yes, every one of us have probably misused statistics at some time in our life. But I must admit to being furious about the almost incessant deluge of not just poor statistics but totally misleading, dangerously misleading generalization.  

When I was first doing my doctor's degree my committee told me that to have 1,000 case studies for a population of 3 million was not sufficient to generalize - i.e. draw a conclusion about what can be expected among 3 million people by testing a sample of 1,000.  Almost daily Gallop Poll, Fox News or some other media which people erroneously trust tells us that "all Americans believe ..." or "all Americans want..." or "all Americans will..." based upon less than 2,000 people. They are telling the gullible American public that what they're saying is true based upon 0.00057% of the US population.  (My original PhD study was based upon 0.03% and academically that wasn't considered good enough.)  This is generally done on purpose because people will buy things if they think 'everyone else' is buying it, and they will often vote for or like a candidate if they think that 'everyone else' likes and is going to vote for them. (How do I know this? Not from any statistics but from observing people in a 37 year psych practice. So I could be wrong, but I bet you I'm not.) 

Now, I do have to admit that there are a lot of factors in deciding upon an adequate sample, along with a very lengthy and complex formula, but the basic is simple - the higher the percentage of respondents the lower your margin of error and higher you confidence level.  If I have a room full of people - say 50 - and I want to generalize what they think about an issue, I have a much better chance of being correct the more people I ask.  

Here is a good example from www.dummies.com article Generalizing Statistical Results to the Entire Population. 

"For example, a researcher wants to know how cable news channels have influenced the way Americans get their news. He also happens to be a statistics professor at a large research institution and has 1,000 students in his classes. He decides that instead of taking a random sample of Americans, which would be difficult, time-consuming, and expensive, he will just put a question on his final exam to get his students' answers. His data analysis shows that only 5 percent of his students read the newspaper and/or watch network news programs anymore; the rest watch cable news. For his class, the ratio of students who exclusively watch cable news compared to those students who don't is 20 to 1. The professor reports this and sends out a press release about it. The cable news channels pick up on it and the next day are reporting, "Americans choose cable news channels over newspapers and network news by a 20-to-1 margin!"

Do you see what's wrong with this picture? The problem is that the professor's conclusions go way beyond his study, which is wrong. He used the students in his statistics class to obtain the data that serves as the basis for his entire report and the resulting headline. Yet the professor reports the results about all Americans. It's safe to say that a sample of 1,000 college students taking a statistics class at the same time at the same college doesn't represent a cross section of America."   (ref.: http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/generalizing-statistical-results-to-the-entire-pop.html)  

This is what organizations like Gallop and Fox do day after day after day. And we eat it up and repeat it as absolute truth ...  All Americans ... because Gallop or Fox did a study. Most of you who have followed me on FaceBook for years know that the first thing I do when anyone quotes a study is to check out the study. And more often than I like I have to try to find a nice way to tell a friend that they've fallen for a bunch of bull shit. 

You don't really need to be able to use the formula  E = zα/2/(2√ n)  [margin or error] or n = [ (z² * p * q ) + ME² ] / [ ME² + z² * p * q / N ]  to know the so-called pollsters are giving you bad statistics.  Since most people can't work those formula and even graduate students, who use statistics constantly, shudder at the thought, we can apply some good old fashioned common sense. When some news media or politician or corporation tells you "Americans think ..." ask some questions: (1) how many people did they ask?  It's hard to suggest that knowing what 1250 people think you therefore know what 350,000,000 Americans think.  (2) how did they gather their sample - i.e. is it really a random sample or is it like the Professor above?  If Fox news talks to 6 young people in a Vermont town and then wants to tell us everyone in Vermont thinks ... I wouldn't believe it.  Knowing the difference between NYC and Upstate NY, do you think you could generalize what all New Yorkers think because they asked a group from NYC?  Do you think you could generalize what all Illini think if the sample is all from Chicago?  I don't think people in Metropolis, IL would think so. (3) Was the sample representative?  In the example above all of the respondents were college students taking a statistics class. That isn't representative.  In the Fox news feature about Vermont all of the people to whom they spoke were young people from the same town.  Do you think someone can walk into your town, pick a handful of young people off the street and be able to say what your entire state thinks or believes?  Common sense would say "no". Diversity within a town makes good random sampling difficult. Diversity within a State makes good random sampling and statistical analysis a nightmare. So how could you feel at all confident of a generalized statement "all Americans believe ... want ... think" based upon <2000 people who may have come out of the same telephone directory?  

Last but not least, I have to admit something which every graduate student from the beginning of time has know but doesn't really want to admit.  There's an old adage "figures lie and liars figure."  Some years ago I was teaching gerontology and supervised doctoral students. I was the one the grad students didn't want on their committee because the only reason the church college put up with me was because I kept their statistics honest and they were going for a more prestigious accreditation. I haven't done any serious statistics since I stopped, but I still remember enough that I would give you almost any odds you wanted that I could take any set of data and draw a completely different conclusion without changing the data. How?  In almost every statistical analysis (especially the common ones used by most graduate students) the data, at some point, is in a cell, group, block or something similar. All you have to do is change the definitions of the cell, group, block, etc., so that it causes some data to be in a different cell. Take my word for it. It can be done.  Just ask any grad student who has been faced with their data showing absolutely nothing, and they've been faced with the real temptation to play the statistics. The thing is the grad student knows they're going to get caught and that's bad.  Gallop, Fox New, et al, don't have that worry.  

So what can you believe?  Unfortunately, not much.  Everyone has an agenda and I hate to admit that I have less confidence in professional integrity now than ever before. The professor in the example above had a contract and wanted to save money. The cable news company that contracted him was fine with that and they skewed it a bit farther. It was bad statistics in the first place that were made worse. You can be skeptical without being a pessimist. Be a scientist . . . a detective. Even if you have some level of confidence in your sources, check them out. Every properly prepared statistical analysis will tell you (i) how their research was designed, (ii) how their groups are defined, (iii) how they gathered their data, (iv) how they managed their data, and (v) what test(s) or formula(s) they used to arrive at their conclusion. If they are unwilling to tell you this information, don't believe a word they say.  If they do provide this information, then apply the questions: (1) how many people did they survey, question, or interview? (2) What percentage is their sample of the population to which they are generalizing the results? (3) Was the collection random? Disney has their data collectors watch a gate or some other physical feature and ask every x adult who passes that spot. (4)  Was the sample representative. An entire sample from Bucksnort, TN (which is a real place southwest of Nashville in Duck Hollow) can't represent Tennessee nevertheless the US.  (5) Considered variables - race, sex, age, even time of day, season, holidays, etc. Most of my doctoral students failed because they failed to consider the variables that can skew data.  

Even when you have extensive statistical experience it is hard to know what to believe. But there are those things which cause red lights to start flashing and sirens go off in my head. Don't just believe a source (news media, politician, political party, etc.) because you like them.  Use common sense -  if I say that "everyone in Evansville, IN wants the teen drinking age lowered to 15" and you find that I interviewed 12 teenagers at Eastland Mall, my conclusions should be suspect.  What should you think about a statement "95% of people interviewed felt Michigan State is a horrible university" and then you find that the sample was 100% from Columbus, Ohio?   There was a movie (I'm not going to take time to try to find it) that had a woman pointing at her ear and saying something like "this is a highly developed bullshit detector" . . . you need to develop such a detector.  

It is bad enough that we have to tolerate news media, politicians, political parties, corporations and all sort of public figures handing us bullshit and expecting us to believe it.  What is worse is that so many people very innocently do believe it.  I've known educated people who believed that if it was in print it must be true.  It takes a lot of effort not to be misled.  Please make the effort to resist bad "facts", "statistics", "studies" and do your best to encourage others to do likewise. We can do no more than try.  

RYUHIKO - 09

In a dingy office on the edge of Boulder, Colorado a short, over-weight man sat behind a cluttered desk. He was perspiring profusely and his face belied the excruciating internal conflict he was experiencing. He was looking at a tall, slender man who stood calmly looking out of the widow at the dirty clutter of storage tanks and tanker trucks.

"Look, Mr. Nieman," the tall man said without turning away from the window. "you have hundreds of gallons of sludge out there. You can't afford to pay for disposal. You have no more storage. You're about to go under ... you're going to drown in your own waste."

"I know. I know!" whimpered Trevor Nieman, the man at the desk.  "I've just never done anything like this before, and it seems so . . . . so . . . ." He struggled for the words to describe the disgusting deed that he knew he was going to do.

"You're not going to hurt anyone."  The tall man, who had introduced himself as Larry Stephano, turned and faced Nieman. "Besides they're just a bunch of Indians in the middle of no-where."

"I know. I just . . . ."

"Just what!?" Stephano was getting annoyed. "Just going to lose your business. Just going to lose your big house, mountain lodge, fine cars, reputation . . . .?"

"Okay." Nieman looked down at the checkbook lying on the desk in front of him. He picked up the pen and wrote Larry Stephano a check for fifty thousand dollars.

"Good," Stephano was now all smiles. In fact his grin could have been called scary. "Two tankers. Have them meet my man in Kinnear.  He'll lead them to the dump site."

*  *  *

Several days later an off-duty Shoshone deputy sheriff named Eddie Proudeagle was trekking along a ledge above the Ethete Cutoff southwest of Kinnear, Wyoming.   Looking down on the road he noticed a curious site.  There were two tanker trucks following a pickup up the road past Mule Butte. One didn't usually see trucks on the  cutoff, nevertheless two tankers.  He watched. When they stopped near a small dirty road that lead up to the foot of Mule Butte, the deputy became concerned. He got his radio out of his pack and called dispatch.

Slowly the trucks started up the dirt road. It was difficult.  Lefu watched from the edge of Mule Butte. It had been so easy to get Trevor Nieman to pay him to dump toxic waste into Johnstown Valley from the side of Mule Butte.  Nieman would have dumped his waste in right into the Wind River if Lefu told him. He would have done anything to save his wealth and avoid the embarrassment of bankruptcy. This was a start. Nieman would get caught soon but there were plenty more like him.

The trucks were getting near the turn that would take them to the end of the road and their dump site right up against Mule Butte.  There was a three hundred foot drop into the valley.

While the trucks were moving into place to dump their loads the Sheriff and two deputies were turning south onto Ethete Cutoff and moving fast.   Dispatch had told the Sheriff about Eddie Proudeagle's report.  There was no reason for two tank trucks to be on the cutoff road, nevertheless pulling off on one of the side roads, unless they were up to no good.

As the sheriff sped down Ethete Cutoff the dispatcher had been talking to Eddie Proudeagle and Eddie was walking casually toward the old blue Ford F-150 that was still sitting where the tankers had turned off. The man in the driver's seat watched Eddie in his mirror. He watched more out of curiosity than concern. To him it was just a hiker.

Eddie stepped to the passenger's side when he got close to the vehicle. Eddie noted that the driver was alone. He carefully drew his service revolver that was on his right hip. He kept it out of the driver's view until he pulled open the passenger door and aimed it at the driver.

"Deputy Sheriff. Keep your hands on the wheel where I can see them."

The driver glanced down at a two-way radio lying on the seat.

"No," said the Deputy smiling. "You don't get to warn your buddies that we're coming. I can pull this trigger a lot faster than you can get to that radio. Just sit still and relax."

The Sheriff and three others arrived a few minutes later. The driver was removed from the truck, handcuffed and put in the back of one of the squad cars. Eddie climbed into the backseat of the Sheriff's car and they started up the rough dirt road.

"I'm sure glad you were out here," the Sheriff said smiling at Eddie in his mirror. "Did they have any markings?"

"None that I could see from the ridge."

"Doesn't matter. The only thing up this road is the old abandoned sheep ranch."

The men dumping the tankers couldn't hear the Sheriff's approach with the engines and pumps running. One of the men happened to look up and saw the cars approaching when they were  not quite 100 yards away. He picked up a rifle and shot at the approaching cars. The bullet shattered the Sheriff's window.

"Guess that confirms our assumption they're up to no good," said the Sheriff cutting the steering wheel hard to the left and sliding to a stop. The second squad car followed suit. Another bullet smashed the Sheriff's light bar.

The Sheriff reached into the back seat of his car and got his bullhorn.

"This is Sheriff Weda. There is no way out of here. Throw down your guns and step out with you hands up."

There was a long pause. Suddenly a man stepped out from behind one of the tankers and opened fire with an automatic weapon. That's all it took. It was over in an instant.  One of the deputies returned fire and hit the gunman. The gunman held his finger on the the trigger of his automatic weapon as he fell and sent a hail of high calibre ordinance into the side of the tanker, the control panel and the pipe which was still spewing toxic waste. In a flash, literally, there was an explosion with flames and black smoke rising high into the sky. Within seconds the entire ravine was an inferno and soon the fire had followed back up the dump hose of the second tanker and it exploded.

The heat was so intense that the Sheriff's men climbed into their cars and back away as quickly as they could. Hours later the area was still burning.  A group of volunteer firemen and a brush truck had come to make sure that the fire didn't turn into a raging wildfire.  One of the Sheriff's deputies sat with them drinking coffee.  At the top of the butte above them Lefu also stood watching. He was disappointed. He had really wanted Nieman to make a couple of dumps before something like this happened, and he really wanted at least one load of waste to make it to the Wind River, but he did enjoy the show nevertheless. He so enjoyed it when he caused chaos, death and destruction.  Anyway, Nieman wasn't the only pawn in the game.  

*   *   *

Shinmasa's training was going quite well.  He especially like breathing fire and was getting quite accurate. This, he had thought, would have been great fun if he weren't constantly reminded of the reason for the training.  

Lefu and his stinky servant, Bafu Nama, were noticeably keeping their distance. Shinmasa knew that it wasn't because of Ryuhiko's great power. So what was up?  

While Shinmasa really enjoyed life in the lair - no electricity, no phones, no computers - he had realized his need for a computer and insisted that Moru allow him to bring a generator, computer and satellite dish to the lair.  Since his encounter with Lefu, Shinmasa had been mulling over Lefu's threat. Lefu had said that he wasn't going to kill Ryuhiko because he wanted Ryuhiko to witness the destruction of North America. Even if Lefu was a spirit gone bad, anything he did to destroy the mundane physical world would have to be a physical act.  Faced with that scenario, Shinmasa knew that his computer would be the weapon of choice. Lefu had been brazen enough to announce that he wanted an audience for his deadly act, but he demonstrated self-controlled. He knew that he dare not tell anyone what he was going to do. 

When he wasn't Ryuhiko training to be the dragon king, Shinmasa was either meditating or on his computer. He enjoyed spending time with Moru. The two of them would go out on the ledge above the cirque after dinner and talk. Even though she was a spirit, Shinmasa knew that he was still in love with Mary, Moru's physical manifestation. He loved how she would sit near him, looking up at the sky. They would try to talk about pleasant, mundane things - trees, mountains, rivers, stars - but the conversation always ended up being about Lefu. 

After his meditation, Shinmasa would spend hours on the internet. If the clue to Lefu's plan was anywhere to be found, it had to show up on his computer. With his computer Shinmasa could take the pulse of the world and find anomalies in the normal series of events. He knew that whatever Lefu was up to would make anything from a giant spash to a ripple on the internet surface, and he would see it. He had to see it. If he was to defeat Lefu, it had to be because he used his brain and was one step ahead. If all he had was brute strength, he knew that he was dead, and so was the world.  

Shinmasa had seen the report of the incident at Mule Butte on the internet. It hadn't particular stood out because that type of activity wasn't all that uncommon, but Shinmasa had made a mental note nevertheless. A few weeks later Shinmasa was on his computer in the early morning hours. He sat looking intently at his computer screen. 

"That's it," he said aloud to himself. "That's it!" He flipped thorough several screens. Sitting back in his chair he proclaimed "Lefu, you son-of-a-bitch, I've got you. I know what you're up to and it isn't going to happen on my watch!"  

WILLY FACE LIFT - INSTALLMENT 13

Today is Saturday, February 21st.  It has been 35 days since we started Willy's face lift.  A lot has happened but we have come to the culmination of the most 'public' (noticeable to those who encounter Willy) part of the project --- the paint job.  I started the first coat of red around noon today and finished the second coat around 6:45 this evening.  I must admit that my first emotional reaction was pride.  No one would ever believe that one could brush on an industrial automotive enamel. BUT WE DID!!  If you want it to look like a new car paint job, then you want to use a commercial spray set up. (Not only very expensive but requiring a paint box big enough to house your trailer!)  If you want a really good quality of paint job that still looks good going down the road, you can consider roller or brush with a commercial enamel know as 'tractor paint'.  As you will remember, we couldn't use the roller because Willy's skin is not flat.  I had to use a brush. In fact, I used a 3" brush.

As a therapist I have no problem with healthy pride.  In this case, I have no problem saying 'Willy looks good!'   Acrylic Modified Alkyd Enamel did a great job covering all of the body repairs we had to make.  If you look back at the data sheet on Installment-12  you will notice all of the solvents, etc., to which this paint is resistant. Everything from sulfuric acid to gasoline.

Masked, covered and ready to paint

Preparing for the red took a lot more masking and covering than for the white.  Pamela and I worked together and got everything that isn't supposed to be red very well covered.  It didn't take long to learn that when you're dealing with this type of paint a drip can be a disaster.  I only had about three spots where white dripped on the primer that was to be painted red. It took two coats to cover the white enamel. Knowing that this would be the case, we spent considerable time covering anything which we didn't want to be red. In the entire project we have used about 4 rolls of paint tape and two rolls of brown paper.  Your time, frustration and paint isn't worth skimping on the cost of those items.  If you have any concern, mask and/or cover it.

How we handled this as a team: On the top row Pamela would pull off a piece of tape about 3 feet long. I would start applying the tape - leaving at least 1/2 not fixed - as she measured out and tore off the paper. She would then hold the paper as I slipped it under the tape. For the subsequent two rows the paper would be anchored at one end. Pamela would roll out the paper and position it as I applied small pieces to hold it in place. Then we would both cover the entire seam.  Unless I just poured paint down the side, there is no way it should get past this covering.

I applied the paint with the best quality 3" brush we could find.  As I have said before, you have to be careful of runs and that this paint seems to wait until you're not looking to run. Willy took 3 pints of paint to do two coats.

Tomorrow (Sunday) morning I will have to decide whether or not the paint is hard enough for me to do the two pinstripes.  Most everyone who is knowledgeable about paint or trailer restoration encouraged us not to use pinstripe applications.  The only option is to paint the pinstripes by hand. That's what I'm going to do.  I have a high quality 1" brush.  It will be tedious but should be worth it. We both agree that the pinstripe will really set off the paint job.

All that's left before Willy can be back on the road is: (1) the new roof seal.  (2) new edging.  (3) paint undercarriage. (4) clean window frames and re-install. (5) install new fixtures - drain plug, and tank fill.  (6) re-install air conditioner. We're actually hoping that we will be finished before we leave for our cruise, but that's just a little over two weeks.

I must say that I am proud of our work. I really think Willy will turn heads as we go down the road.

Interdependence and Nature

I am beginning to believe that the westerner must be one of the most isolated and lonely creatures on the earth. Where else can you stand in the bustling streets of a city of eight million people and feel so alone that it is frightening? Pamela's college is using a book entitled “Garbology” (Humes, Edward. 2013. Garbology: our dirty love affair with trash. Avery. New York, NY ISBN 978-1-58333-523-9) for its interdisciplinary studies next year. Each discipline is asked to relate and explore the book from their perspective and disciplinary position. As Pamela told me about the book I learned that trash/garbage is becoming the United State's number one export. That's right. According to Humes, in 2010 our two highest volume exports to China were paper waste and scrap metal. (Hey, Cousin Michael - Dr. Michael Harkin, anthropology, University of Wyoming - what do you think your colleagues a thousand years from now will make of that? :D )

If our trash and garbage is becoming our number one export, I am prepared to make the case that our sense of loneliness in a crowd and our adamant determination of separation and independence is a close second. Although I must admit, I doubt that there are any statistics or other empirical data to make my case. To observe this I would direct your attention to modern western-like cities around the world in non-western countries. At least from my perspective, they stand out in their difference from the structure and culture around them. I have no evidence objective or subjective to generalize this attitude to the local population, but that would be my expectation.

I suspect that this is more symptomatic than causal. To determine that would be an extensive study in itself. Nevertheless my own experience and observation leads me to believe that the nature of our communities is a result of our transition into the lonely-in-a-crowd, high-tech individualist. 

Homo sapiens started out as gatherers then moved to hunter-gatherers and to farmers. In all of these aspects of our development we were close to the nature around us. It was probably not until about 6,000 years ago or more when semi-permanent agricultural communities began to show up and slowly developed into cities that homo sapiens began to identify themselves apart from the world around them.  I'm not a trained anthropologist, but this makes sense to me. Whether or not I am close or totally off on my assumption, the end result was an animal species that thought of itself as totally separate from all other living creatures. That is readily observable and can be confirmed by multiple observers at the same or different times. They even created deities to confirm that assumption. At least we know for certain that happened in the middle east. That "confirmation", in my opinion, has paved the way for greater and greater isolation. 

High-tech home

Then we introduce technology. Now we have the sense that we have no need of other homo sapiens nevertheless any need for the rest of life on earth. 'Give me my iPad, Keurig, microwave and car and I'm a totally independent being.'  Well, that might be pushing it a bit, but you get the idea. 

Now we have two lines of thinking to follow at this point: (1) homo sapiens belief in personal independence, and (2) homo sapiens belief that it is a superior, independent species. Obviously I believe that both of these are totally wrong. Actually, having given both some serious thought, I conclude that they are both totally absurd. 

I do not believe that I'm thinking outside the box. My contention is that homo sapiens, for all their self-inflated feelings of intelligence, are totally clueless and still looking for the proverbial box. Every time we all agree on a "new fact" - e.g. the world is round - then all of our truths, absolutes, etc., change to match the newly acquired information.  Quantum physics is currently playing havoc with the established truths and absolutes.  So, I might be thinking outside the currently established "box" - i.e. those concepts and assumptions that drive our current society - but like all the rest, I'm still looking for the real thing.  I just think, however, that I might have a good idea where to look. 

Let's start with the homo sapiens belief in personal independence.  With the cultural history of US development and westward expansion, fierce independence has become almost synonymous with the American.  Ah, yes, the famous  "I ain't beholding to nobody for nothin'."  But I beg to differ. I do not believe that has ever been true in the modern world and it definitely is not true in the 20th or 21st century.  

Let's start with the alarm clock that awakens you for work. The act of waking up for work is attached to or dependent upon thousands of other people.  It took hundreds, maybe thousands of people to discover, dig/mine the raw materials to make the clock. Hundreds were required to fabricate parts and put them together into the device you have on your night stand. We can get to the night stand, which supports your clock, later.  Of course we can't leave out the thousands of people involved in the vehicles and transportation of materials and parts as well as those involved in the building of the factory where your clock was made. So how many thousands of people do you think it actually took to produce your clock?  Now you must have at least one person to drive the clock to the store where you bought it. We'll skip any warehouses, employees, etc., for the sake of time, and go straight from factory to store. We'll also skip the thousands involved in providing the truck that transported the clock or the roads on which the truck moved.  We'll need at least one person to remove the clock from the truck, and another to put it on the shelf as well as another to check you out at the register. This could all be the same person, if it is a small mom-n-pop store, so at least one more.  Of course we can't forget that the store is in a building that required hundreds of people, and the sidewalk from your car to the building, which probably required 25-50 people. Oh, yes, there's very likely a parking lot, but even if there's not a parking lot there is a road on which you traveled to get to the store. That brings us to the car which transported you and the gasoline or electricity to run your car . . . . do we need to keep going?!  You haven't gotten out of bed yet and you're already interdependent with many thousands of people through your alarm clock. Now let's talk about the bed upon which you slept, the sheets, blankets, pillows. Then there's your house, the bathroom fixtures, the water, the soap, the razor, and on and on and on.  I believe I've made my point. If in no other way, we are physically interdependent with the world around us.  We haven't even touched on psychological, emotional interdependence which is not as easily demonstrated, but still quite observable.  

Now we can turn our attention to the homo sapiens belief that it is a superior species that has no need of other life forms. If you are an intelligent, rational, open-minded human you are way ahead of me and already have numerous examples of why we are not independent of other life forms.  It seems that most source agree that around 80% of the world's population eat meat. Last time I looked meat was the carcass of an animal. According to USDA data, Americans consumed a high of 145.74 pounds of meat per person per year in 2004.  In 2012 we at 131.98 pounds/person. Sure sounds like we're dependent upon other life forms. Food in general makes us dependent upon the nature we attempt to deny and minimize. Then from where does one think all of the raw materials for our modern technology come? Even synthetic, man-made materials have some basis in the nature of which we are a part. Last time I knew we hadn't found a way to make something out of nothing. The chemicals with which we play god are all found in nature or the parent of the chemical came from nature. There is no way around it. We are totally, 100% dependent upon nature. 

When I was sharing my thesis with Pamela she commented that she didn't feel alone in a big city but felt very much alive.  Was my hypothesis in trouble?  Quite the contrary. Pamela is an example of exactly where my thesis is going - attitude and understanding.  You see, Pamela does enjoy the city very much but she feels equally, if not more alive when we are trekking, kayaking, or cycling forty or fifty miles out in the wilderness. To what would you accredit that?

Ask Pamela if she feels that she is totally independent of other homo sapiens.  I believe you will get the answer 'no'.  I believe you will find that she feels very much a part of people.  She laughs with them and cries with them. She is sensitive to their strengths, weaknesses, and fears.  She wants to help others and she loves to have others be a part of her life. Not long ago she talked about stopping to visit our friends from camping and National Park Service on the way to Key Largo. I laughed heartily and pointed out that if we stopped and visited with each - which would require one day of visit and one day of travel per friend - it would take us between two and three weeks to get from western Kentucky to southern Florida. So I feel very comfortable in saying that Pamela would answer the question "do you feel totally independent of other homo sapiens" with a firm "no".

Ask Pamela if she feels that homo sapiens are a superior species with no need for other life forms. Again I feel confident of a resounding "no".  After all Pamela is a biology professor with an unbelievable love for geology and all things natural. I dare say that she would bring up two ideas to clarify her position; viz. her sense of oneness and quantum physics.

Oh, my. Now I've done it.  But many of you knew that I'd get to this point sooner or later. Was there a pool betting on how long it would take me?  Did I win?

Kidding aside, this is where the proverbial rubber hits the road. Having, I believe, rather conclusively demonstrated that we are neither independent from one another nor from other life forms, we go back to my posit that our sense of isolation goes back to our development which involved moving away from activities that are directly related to our connection to nature. Our ancient ancestors did not need a philosophy to determine their interdependence. It was a part of their every day survival. If the smithy was gone, who was going to make the new plow or repair the broken one?  If you didn't have a plow, how were you going to get your crops in? If you didn't get your crops in, how were you going to survive the winter?  Our ancient ancestors did not need a philosophy or any empirical evidence to know that we are a part of nature.  We are conceived like other animals. Born like other animals. Nurse at our mothers' breast like other animals. Work to survive and eventually die like other animals. I firmly believe that they had a sense of their oneness with everything around them. There was no reason for them to feel otherwise since they had no experience which would contradict that sense of oneness.

I do not believe that it takes a quantum leap to make the connection that as we grew as a species, mostly from our own design, away from our connection to and place in nature we gradually lost our awareness of oneness which was replaced by a sense of isolation. In almost 40 years of practice as a psychotherapist in an institutional setting I saw a tremendous amount of anxiety and depression. Much of that was strictly a chemical imbalance - endogenous.  Nevertheless I saw a great deal of exogenous depression and anxiety; i.e. depression and anxiety resulting from life experiences, events and situations. In these latter cases I can confidently say that most, if not all, felt totally isolated and disconnected. They expressed feeling that the world was out to get them, which could be looked upon as delusional or paranoid thinking but which I believe really reflects a common societal malady due to our disconnect from others and most importantly from nature. It would seem to follow that the simple cure would be to send them out into nature, but that isn't going to work without an attitude change and paradigm shift.

Believe it or not I don't want to get into a discussion of quantum mind, sunyata, and how what we think effects our reality and the physical world around us. That is great stuff, but is perhaps best viewed as the next step after coming to grips with the reality that we, as homo sapiens, are totally interdependent upon others of our species as well as upon being a part of nature. For our modern western world, due to its philosophies and religions, that represents a significant paradigm shift. Only when we can make that paradigm shift - that change in the way we, as individuals, think - can we take the next step to the realization of oneness as explained by quantum physics as well as Buddhism and other spiritual communities. Believe me. From my own experience and that of those with whom I've talked about this, sensing this oneness makes one feel really alive.

RYUHIKO - 08

Life in the lair soon evolved into a routine. Moru would arrive shortly after sunrise with two old fashioned quart bottles of milk.  Catherine, who was always up before the sun, would have steel cut oatmeal with top milk and fresh bread ready for Moru and him. The whole raw milk was a treat. When a bottle of unpasteurized whole milk is allowed to sit, the cream floats to the top. That's how it gets its name 'top milk'.  As a child, Shinmasa's parents always bought their milk straight from a dairy farmer. It definitely got the kids to the breakfast table. The first ones there got the top milk for their cereal.

Catherine was a whiz with a cast iron dutch oven. She would do porridge, stews, a vegetarian version of shepherd's pie, a Greek style vegetable casserole and Italian orzo spinach soup, just to name a few, as well as cobblers and deserts. She would definitely make Alton Brown proud.  Shinmasa always wondered where she came up with all of her supplies. He never saw her leave. There wasn't a road for 30 miles nevertheless a grocery store.  He figured that Moru was providing for her needs somehow.

After a hearty breakfast Shinmasa would transform to Ryuhiko and training would start. He didn't return to his human form until they had high tea about four o'clock in the afternoon. Then he would rest and Moru and he would critique their day.  They would eat another substantial meal - usually from Catherine's seemingly magical dutch oven - in the late evening and Moru would leave. Catherine would finish her chores and retire to her room. Shinmasa would go out on the ledge above the glacier cirque and meditate.

Shinmasa didn't think in terms of progress related to his meditation. It served a purpose. It kept him focused, helped him be more mindful and aware, and he was learning how to manage his emotions. He 'technically' knew all about meditation. He rapidly moved beyond following his breath, although he always started there.  He knew that as he saw past experiences go by like video clips he should acknowledge them along with any emotion and then permit them to move off.  Most people think that our life history flows like an unbroken ribbon when, according to Buddhism, it is a string of these clips. They can be looked at as an event or as minutely as a single breath.

One night as Shinmasa sat meditating he began to study an experience closely.  In the clip he was a small boy with Mahotsukai Ryunake, when he was the family gardener, and another man.  In his mind Shinmasa was leaning closer and closer to see and wishing that he could hear, when he suddenly fell into the historic time clip.

Shinmasa was shocked. He looked around. The others did not appear to be aware of his presence. He spoke but no one appeared to hear.  He was still the observer, but somehow he had actually entered the historic event, the time clip from his past. He watched and listened.

The man to whom Mahotsukai Ryunake was speaking was Japanese. He was tall, well built and dignified. His skin was the color of oak and, close up, showed the affects of time and conflict. His hair was jet black and pulled back into a traditional hair knot. He was wearing a black kimono with gold and silver hamaka and a red montsuki haori jacket.  Shinmasa had not seen such beautiful formal wear since his sister's wedding.

"The boy is strong and clever," Mahotsukai Ryunake was saying. They were both looking down at the child, Shinmasa. "He will take after his father."

The man smiled. "I just wish that he did not have to meet our mutual adversary."

"He will be ready," said Mahotsukai Ryunake. "He is already very skilled in the martial arts."

Shinmasa's Mother approached. She bowed low. "Takai o Ryutada"

"Barako," said Ryutada bowing. "You look good.  You have done a wonderful job raising young Ryuhiko."

"Thank you, my Lord," Shinmasa's mother smiled broadly.

Shinmasa didn't really pay any attention to the rest of the conversation. This was his biological father. She had called him Takai o, or high king. He wanted so much to talk to him but he could only watch. He wanted to see him as a dragon. He wanted to ask him about the light of which he had heard in more than one story.  Listening carefully to the accounts of Ryutada destroying Babe Kgwebo every storyteller mentioned Ryutada putting his hand on Babe's chest and light passing through Babe.

Returning to his meditation felt to Shinmasa like pulling his head through the neck of a tight sweater. He sat looking out into the darkness. He had just seen his biological father, the famous and revered Takai o Ryutada.  It made Shinmasa feel so much better to know that the famous dragon king actually came to visit his son even if he couldn't tell him who he was.

Night after night Shinmasa entered life events where he might be able to catch sight of his father and observe him use the light, but it never happened.  He was watching the clips of his life go by when he noticed the space between the clips.  "Of course," he thought to himself, "sunyata."

Many Buddhist teachers and meditation masters tell how one can get a glimpse of sunyata by getting in that space between the clips. Sunyata is usually translated "emptiness" but it can be translated "spaciousness" and "Openness". It is actually of great positive significance in Buddhism.

Shinmasa thought of the Heart Sutra which contained the famous saying with which every Buddhist student struggled. "Form is emptiness, emptiness is form.  Emptiness is not separate from form, form is not separate from emptiness. Whatever is form is emptiness, whatever is emptiness is form."  He smiled to himself.   Sunyata is not a void. It is the foundation and true nature of all phenomena. It is the basic principle of all existence.

For several more days Ryuhiko practices the arts and skills of being a dragon and understanding his adversary, Lefu Sefefo, by day and Shinmasa meditated and reached out to the space between the clips where he might get a glimpse of sunyata by night.

His chance finally came. It had been a good day and Shinmasa was focused and comfortable in his meditation. He was calmly watching life clips flowing by and observing the space between. In his mind he moved closer and closer as he had done so many times before. But this time the movement of the clips seem to get slower and Shinmasa was able to look beyond.

Shinmasa was standing, or at least he thought he was standing, in a vast void. He was trying to take it all in and make sense of what he was experiencing when there was a voice behind him.

"I didn't expect to find anyone here nevertheless you, my son."

Shinmasa turned. It was his father, Ryutada. "How is this possible?" He asked.

"We are both seeking a glimpse of sunyata," said Ryutada with a smile and turning to look out into the void.

"Is this sunyata?"

"No," said Ryutada, still looking intensely into the void. "but we should be close. We have broken out of our duality."

"But we're here together," insisted Shinmasa. "That can't be. You are dead so you must be from the past and I'm here from the present."

"That may be true," Ryutada laughed, "but last time I knew I am quite alive. The teachers tell us that time is an illusion. Guess this is the proof. Of course I'm here in my now and you're here in your now. I'm evidently dead in your now. Please don't tell me when that is."

"Would that cause some sort of time paradox?"

"I don't think so. But it would weaken me because I would always be aware of my own impending doom and therefore would not be as bold as I should."

"Takai o, I have actually been searching for you."

"How? Why?"

"Never mind the 'how', it didn't work. But everyone who tells how you destroyed Babe Kgwebo tells of the light that came from your hand when you touched his chest.  No one knows what it was."

"The light is the power of all goodness, compassion, peace and joy."

"Goodness, compassion, peace and joy have a power?"

"That's the best way to describe it," said Ryutada. "Have you ever noticed what happens when a group of people are joined together in peace and joy for a good purpose and show compassion?  Nothing can stop them. There is a power. They are stronger than evil and hatred."

"And you found a way to harness that power?"

"No. I don't think so." Ryutada stood and puzzled that for a few moments. "I didn't 'harness' anything. I realized the power and I realized that Buddha was right when he taught that all humans are, by nature, good and compassionate. I learned to focus the energy.  If I were to have focused the power of goodness, compassion peace and joy on an evil human, the goodness and compassion would have overcome their evil and enable them to return to their natural goodness and compassion. Since Babe Kgwebo was made of evil and hatred there was no natural goodness to which to return. He just ceased to be. That's why Lefu keeps his distance from me."

Shinmasa thought about what he had just heard. Could it be so simple as goodness and compassion? Obviously it had been.  "How do I learn to do that?" he asked.

"You can't learn," Ryutada put his hand on the Shinmasa's shoulder. "You can't learn it like ashi guruma or Hikikomi  gaeshi.  If you are pure and true to your calling as a protector, it is inside you right now. It will be there when you need and you will know what to do."

"But Masuta . . . ."

"Trust me," said Ryutada patting Shinmasa on the chest, "it is in there."  Ryutada paused as though listening then said, "I must go."  With that he vanished and Shinmasa was sitting alone on the mountain ledge above the glacier cirque.



08-20150213

RYUHIKO - 07

Ryuhiko - 07-29150212

The lair which Thabeng had created for Ryuhiko was big enough for two or three dragons Ryuhiko's size.  Ryuhiko was only about eight feet tall from the tip of his tail to his nose.  The main chamber of the lair was at least twenty feet high and went a good thirty to forty feet back into the mountain. The floor was the natural stone of the mountain. At the far end was a bed of straw covered with beautiful Persian rugs.

The human area of the lair had much lower ceilings but will still quite spacious. It reminded Shinmasa of pictures he had seen of a desert sheikh's pavilion.  The floor was covered with beautiful Persian carpets. There was a large oval area that was ringed with over-stuffed sofas that were very low to the floor. A number of low wooded tables were scatter within the oval and there was an abundance of pillows. The walls were covered with Persian rugs. An enormous fireplace with thick wooden mantel dominated one wall, and cooking utensils were hanging near the stone hearth.  There was a middle aged woman bent over the fire cooking. She stood up and bowed deeply toward Shinmasa and Moru as the two approached.  They returned her greeting.

"This is Catherine," Thabeng said as she continued to dance around the lair.

"Very nice to meet you," said Shinmasa.

"It is an honor to serve the dragon prince," replied Catherine, again bowing very low.

"How did you . . . ."

"Oh,"  Thabeng interrupted. "Catherine's brother was Ryuyasu. Lefu killed him several years ago. I asked her if she'd like to be your housekeeper while you're here."

"I gladly accepted," added Catherine. "Anything I can do to help bring Lefu's reign of terror to an end."

"Thank you so much."  Shinmasa smiled. "The food smells delicious."

"Thank you," Catherine turned toward the fireplace where a black Dutch oven hung above the fire. "My brother had a lair like this and I learned to cook over an open fire. I actually like it. I became Ryuyasu's  housekeeper after Lefu killed my husband and child."

"I am so sorry," both Shinmasa and Moru said simultaneously.

"I try to let it go as much as possible. I know that anger and hatred only hurt me, and that Lefu gains power from our anger and rage.  It isn't easy."  Catherine focused her attention on the Dutch oven.

Moru and Shinmasa looked into the two rooms that opened off the human area. One was Catherine's room and the other Shinmasa's.  The were both dominated by a large pile of straw covered with beautiful rugs, blankets and pillows.

Catherine made a delicious vegetable soup for dinner with homemade bread.   Thabeng left after dinner and Catherine excused herself and went to her room after she had cleaned up her kitchen. Moru and Shinmasa sat in the comfortable living area sipping on still steaming cups of Aborvitae tea as they watched the fire.  They sat quietly for a long time, each lost in their own thoughts.

It was Shinmasa who finally broke the silence. "Why am I the last of the dragons? Did Lefu kill them all?"

"No," Moru didn't move. She just stared at the fire as she spoke. "Lefu killed several but most just disappeared over time."

"Why was that?"

"The life of a magical creature is dependent upon people either believing in their existence or accepting the possibility of their existence. The Kawizate Dragon is the exception but there were always very few Kawizate.  For a long time before human written history dragons were an integral part of human life and interacted with humans frequently. They were protectors and the humans often looked to dragons for help."

"About 5,000 years ago an evil king named Zli ruled a war-like tribe from a mountain, Grintovec, in what is today Slovenia. From his mountain perch he could swoop down on villages in what is today Italy, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Hungary. He raped, murdered, plundered and enslaved the people. There seemed to be no stopping him.  These were the people of the Urnfield culture and were mostly early Celts. Zli was so evil that the High King of Dragons, Leholo, decided that the dragons must help the humans."

"But if the dragons were helping the people in Europe," asked Shinmasa, "how did they get the reputation of being evil creatures?"

"Like humans, not all dragons are good, nor are all dragons evil," replied Moru rolling onto her side and looking at Shinmasa. "Zli knew that he couldn't defeat the dragons so he bribed some greedy dragons with treasure to join him."

"So that's how the European dragon got the reputation of liking treasure," exclaimed Shinmasa. It was beginning to make sense.

"Yes.  After many years of fierce struggle Zli was killed in battle and the mercenary dragons fled. There was no reason to stick around when the source of their wealth was dead."

"Why were they the ones everyone remembered? Why aren't there stories about Leholo and the good dragons?"

"Homo sapiens have always been story tellers, and they unfortunately will save and repeat the stories that get the best reaction from the crowd. Your modern news media has proven that it's bad new and violence that sells. The story tellers knew that before recorded time. So over time people forgot about how most of the dragons helped."

Shinmasa shook his head sadly.

"After all," Moru explained, "the people of 1930s and 1940s Germany were called Nazis, right?"

"Yes," Shinmasa gave Moru a curious look.

"Did you know that only seven percent of the German people during World War II were actually members of the Nazi Party?"

"No, I didn't." Shinmasa gave that some thought.

"So, because of the story-tellers, European people started thinking of all dragons as evil treasure hoarders."

"That doesn't explain why people can't see dragons anymore."

"Humans were gatherers, then hunters, then farmers. They were always close to their nature. They could see the dragons because they were close to nature and could believe that the dragon existed.  Modern humans say that ancient people believing in dragons was superstition and mythology. As technology grew the human's ability to see all that is around them diminished. They could not see the dragons any more because they were sure they didn't exist."

"Another example of that mind filtration we've talked about," said Shinmasa.

"Partially," replied Moru. "But a lot of it is because humans don't believe that anything can be true or exist unless they have 'discovered' it themselves. They do that to one another.  I bet you didn't know that tuberculosis could have been contained decades earlier if the medical community had not ignored the discoveries of Robert Koch and the work of Edward Trudeau. They were certain that there was no way consumption could be caused by a bacteria so they ignored the evidence for a quarter of a century."

"We are indeed an arrogant breed."

"There is also the problem that as humans have evolved they no longer see themselves as a part of nature. From there it was an easy step to 'I don't like nature' and 'I don't need nature.'  As they mindlessly destroy the nature around themselves in the name of progress they are, in fact, destroying their very being."

"You're preaching to the choir," said Shinmasa.

"Doing what to what?"

"I already agree with that," Shinmasa smiled. "You don't need to sell me."

"I get so upset," Moru turned back toward the fireplace. "Lefu is using them and they are going to help him destroy the world."

"Guess that's where I come in," also turning his attention back to the dying fire. 

"Yes," Moru said softly.  

They fell into silence watching the glowing embers.  Each pondering what the morrow would bring. Moru struggled with the knowledge that the young Ryuhiko did not have the magic experience to battle Lefu. She wondered if she was just uselessly sending the young dragon prince to his death. There didn't seem to be any options and Lefu definitely wanted to hurt the two of them emotionally as well as physically.  Shinmasa also worried about learning enough magic before he had to confront Lefu. He had met Lefu and stood his ground when he really wanted so much to run and hide. He knew that he was no match for the mighty spirit, but he had to try. For the sake of the world and all he loved, he had to try even though he knew, down deep inside, that he was going to die trying. 

Finally Moru excused herself.  She was not going to stay with Shinmasa that night. He would be safe. She had to go and prepare for his training.  Strangely Shinmasa was neither upset nor worried that Moru was leaving him alone. He knew that Lefu wasn't going to kill him in his sleep. Lefu was going to make his death a spectacle. 

He walked with Moru to the mouth of the lair. After she had left, he stood looking out over the mountain. They were dark and cold, but he felt their strength. As he stood staring at nothing at all, he thought about his parents and his ancestry.  His parents were predominantly Buddhist but had retained a lot of Shinto out of respect for their native land.  In the 18th century it was called Shinbutsu. Shinmasa always considered himself more of a Buddhist.  Buddhism is 99% philosophy of life and 1% religion. Shinmasa considered himself 99% Buddhist.  He had noticed the difference between his parent's approach. His Mother practiced walking meditation at least twice a day, moving slowing around her garden. His Father had practiced the tradition sitting meditation. Shinmasa had been taught about meditation but he had always 'thought on his feet'. Driven by an unseen forced Shinmasa sat down on the stone ledge, crossed his legs in the traditional lotus position, and meditated. 

"Breathing in. I know that I am breathing in. Breathing out. I know that I am breathing out." Whenever he caught his thoughts drifting away from his breath he would gently remind himself and return to focusing on his breath. He would see snippets of experiences and events. Looking and letting them go, he would return to his breath.  The memory of Lefu looming over him and threatening him returned time and time again. Shinmasa remembered being taught about making friends with your pain, but the best he could do was to let the image go and return to his breathing. 

In Buddhism we are a part of a oneness. Nichiren, born in 1222, wrote "Life at each moment encompasses ... both self and environment of all sentient beings in every condition of life as well as insentient beings --plants, sky and earth, on down to the most minute particles of dust."  In Buddhism life is a unity of  the physical and the spiritual, with the two aspects of our lives being the a manifestation of the same universal law, totally inseparable and of equal importance. This means that the duality we perceive; i.e. things around us as being separate from us; is an illusion. We are one with the universe. At the most fundamental level of life  there is no separation between what we perceive as "me" and the environment. 

The same is true in quantum physics.  In quantum physics there is no real physical barrier between the atoms which are a part of what we call "us" and the atoms which are a part of another object. This means that, in essence, the entire universe in one enormous connected oneness.  

Shinmasa found that he didn't really want to get up. He sat allowing thoughts to pass by him like a river. Looking and considering each thought, each snippet of memory he sometimes had a difficult time letting go, but he did and they passed along. As the sky went from the blue-grey of pre-dawn to the first rays of the sun, Shinmasa still sat. He was a peace.  

 

WILLY'S FACE LIFT - INSTALLMENT 12

A looooong day.  After checking everything for the third time (at least) I realized that I was stalling.  I was afraid to add the hardener to that first batch and start painting.  It took about three strokes with the roller to realize that a roller wasn't going to work.  The paint is very thick and starts to get stiff quickly. By the time I was starting on side three I could already touch side one.

After my last post a FaceBook friend asked a lot of questions about the paint. They were good questions and ones that I should have anticipated and answered without having to be asked.  The primer I used was just Rustoleum spray primer. It took me eight cans of spray paint.  PPG has recommended primer but I had already done the priming by the time we got the paint.

We were torn between using Rustoleum or what is called "tractor paint".  We had visited a Sherwin-Williams store and they could meet our needs whatever our decision.  I went to an Autozone store for body repair materials and was sent to a PPG Automotive Paint store named Gipe in Madisonville, KY.  The fellow at Gipe was very helpful with the body repair materials so we went back to see about paint - especially since it is an automotive paint store. We could have purchased an enamel that would have perfectly matched the truck but that would have cost almost $200/gal and required a commercial sprayer.  We opted for the "tractor paint".  The tractor paint we used is a PPG ALK-200 Acrylic Modified Alkyd Enamel. The PPG store had a large binder filled with paint color samples. There were 30 colors on a page and there were at least three pages of "white".  We found a very good match for the truck.  The fellow who took care of us suggested that we use the hardener. If you do not use the hardener the paint "re-activates" (softens) if another paint is put over top of it and dulls within a couple of years. The hardener also makes a tougher finish.  We opted to mix the hardener ourselves since we would not be using the entire gallon all at once.  The mixing ratio is 1 oz of hardener to 16 oz of paint. A picture of the store's data printout is at the end of the blog.

Problem spot.  ???

The paint is not designed to be rolled or brushed, but many vintage trailer buff have repainted their trailers with tractor paint using a roller.  It wasn't too bad except for a couple of places. In two places it took on an old cracked paint appearance. The worst were a couple of places where it looked as though I had dropped water into the paint.  It wouldn't spread. I talked to the fellow at PPG and he had no ideas. There was nothing different about those areas - same underlying painted metal, same sanding, same TSP bath, same primer, and it was not touched after that to the best of my knowledge. As you can see in the picture (L) it is a mess. Unfortunately it is the front right corner, near the door, which is going to be seen first by almost anyone who visits us.  I'm hoping that I can fix it with the second coat.

Area covered by one pint of paint. 

Otherwise the first coat went well.  Coverage seems to be good. as you can see from the picture to the right, I got about 12-15 feet of trailer from a pint of paint.  Of course the front and back have a lot more white than the sides. Our landlord and a friend came in just as I had finished the first coat. His friend, named Slim, looked at the paint then said, "I didn't really think you'd be able to do it."   I decided to take that as an affirmation even if it is far from perfect.

The PPG fellow said that I should not use one of the 'between-coats' sponges that are designed to remove runs, bubbles, etc.  He gave me a reason. I honestly can't remember the reason.  All that mattered was that he said not to touch the first coat.

Front after one coat. 

I finished the first coat just after 12 noon.  I headed back to do the second coat just before 4 pm.

Second coat

Pamela expressed a concern that I might be pointing out all of the imperfections and be rather self-deprecating. I assured her that I'm definitely not unhappy with the way things are going, but for the purpose of good sharing and helping others who follow, and who might also attempt to paint an uneven surface with tractor paint with a paint brush, I feel it important to point out problems.  It's more like the good scientist who reports her/his mistakes so that others might avoid them or perhaps find the solution.

The first thing I need to share is that unless you are a seasoned professional painter like my friend, John Bzdell (Marathon  Painting, Huntsville, AL) you will have runs if you try to brush on acrylic modified alkyd enamel. If I had known that I was going to be brushing I might have gone to someone like John and asked for tips to reduce the runs.  I don't think they detract from the overall appearance of Willy, but I know they're there.  Just be prepared.  Tractor paint seems to have a sinister personality that waits until I'm busy with another part of the trailer before it starts running.  (That last sentence is called anthropomorphism and paranoia.)

Before I do the burgundy I am going to get a second opinion from someone who really knows this paint about using the "between coats" sponge.  This would obviously dramatically reduce run marks, but I want to be sure that I don't destroy my paint or finish in the process. I would suggest that you do the same before you start your project.

I already told you about and shared a picture of the area that looked like water had gotten into the paint. I admit I was terrified that it wouldn't cover on the second coat.  If you look closely and know what had been there, the surface doesn't appear as even as elsewhere but I am pleased with the way the second coat seems to have solved the problem.  There were two places on Willy where that happened.  At this writing the only explanation anyone can give me is contamination but from where and how.  The same batch of paint was used over a wide area without problems, so, if there was contamination it had to be local. I would not have been surprised with this type of experience on the right rear side panel where we had experimented with the paint, but not on an area that had been so carefully prepared.  If I ever figure it out, I'll share what I learn.  If you try a similar paint project, encounter this problem, and figure it out, please let me know.

A second strange phenomena showed up in two places. The picture to the right is near the right rear running light. This spot did not correct.  I was able to cover the other similar area.  Both spots were near lights or markers. There was a lot of silicone and other adhesive used around these lights. At this point my working hypothesis is that despite all of the scraping, sanding, use of adhesive removers, and washing with trisodium phosphate there was some sort of residue that remained. Thankfully, because it is up next to the running light, it is not noticeable. The only option that would be assured to work would be to grind it down to bare metal and start over. I'm not doing that.

Second coat left side

All told it was another one of those scary new experiences.  I think I've said before that I'm getting so accustomed to 'scary new experiences' that they're not keeping me awake anymore. They're just the next thing I have to face.  So far we really have been having fun. According to the data sheet the paint is dry to the touch in 2 hours, to handle in 3 hours and "dry" in 10 hours, but not fully cured until 7 days.  I have to re-tape and cover the white, so I'm going to give it plenty of time so I don't damage the finish with my tape.

Second coat right side

As I was uploading the picture to the right, it made me think about the fact that the door took the paint beautifully. The door is fiberglass. The data sheet doesn't even mention being used on fiberglass. We were a bit concerned, but, it did fine.

Once we finish the painting we down to painting the frame, sealing the roof, putting on the edging, and putting on the new fixtures.  Once we pull him out of the garage we have to replace the air conditioner and Willy will be ready to hit the road for another season.  We did 7,000 miles with Willy last year. Who wants to bet we'll beat that this year?

Front after second coat. 

PAINT DATA SHEET 

Front page of paint data sheet provided by PPG store. 

Page two of the data sheet