Coolspring Day 4!

Another Day in the Truck 

The weather was GORGEOUS! However, I stayed in the truck. Why? Well, the museum was really busy. That’s a very good thing. Xyra thought it to be more prudent to keep me from the crowds, just in case I got lost. That would not be good. So I got to read another book and learn a few things to share with you about tea. Before we get to that, let’s take care of other business.

Food Update

Oh, I forgot to mention that Wednesday’s dinner (Cheeseburger with sauce on a long roll…drool worthy.) and Thursday’s breakfast were from Villela Meats at the food court. Super yummy. Thursday’s dinner was with our “neighbors.” Jodie made these really tasty chicken sandwiches and had raw veggies and chips on the side. My dessert was a graham cracker sandwich with chocolate frosting inside. (Xyra’s Aunt Lanie does something similar with Nilla wafers.)

This morning we started with breakfast at Villela’s Meats. Lunch (Cheese steak with sauce…also drool worthy.) was there too. Dinner was the Community Center spaghetti dinner. A big plate of spaghetti with sauce and two meatballs, salad, dessert, and a drink.

Engines

With it being so nice a LOT of engines were running. These are some of what Xyra caught with the camera. These were down on Exhibitor’s Row with the Bull Dog.

A “horse & a half” (1½ hp) Thermoil U

A 2½ hp Burnoil

A Petter S

Back at the Annex

After some fine tuning over the past few days, the 18 hp twin is chugging along smoothly. It ran all day long; I could see it from the truck most of the time.

Here you can see how they start or “crank” the engines.

This is an 8 hp (I'm sorry I don't remember what brand Hvid).

After the spaghetti supper we went to presentation on the History and Development of Oil Engines. Professor M was in charge. It was a really great presentation. Xyra took quite a few notes. She snapped this candid on the way out of the church.

Book Review

The Demon in the Teahouse by Dorothy & Thomas Hoobler

This is book two in a series and I have not read the first. The good thing is that this story did stand alone well. I didn't need to know what happened last time to understand what was going on this time.

The main character is a boy. Reading from his point of view was something new for me. Add in thact this is historical fiction set in Japan during the 1700s…saying I learned a lot is just the tip of the iceberg.

To be honest, it seems that the olden days weren’t much different whether you lived in Europe or the Far East. If you were born into a certain level of society that is where you stayed until you died. Seikei is able to shift from the merchant class to train as a samurai by having Judge Ooka adopt him as his son. It is a difficult transition and when the story opens we see Seikei struggling with his training.

When Judge Ooka and his troops are sent to Edo to fight fires, Seikei goes along. It turns out there is more to these fires than meets the eye – murder is also found, not one but three Geishas have been killed. So Ooka and Seikei set out to solve the mystery and discover the demon causing such troubles.

Xyra’s Review

Speaking of Tea

Tea Quote

“I hope you like Earl Grey. I find it a soothing treat in the middle of the afternoon.” ~ Mrs. Roth Chapter Five of Chapter & Hearse by Lorna Barrett

Tea Fact

White tea is very delicate. Never use boiling water; use water between 170 and 185 degrees. Steep only 2-4 minutes.

More tomorrow!

Best wishes,

Melody

Coolspring Day 3 Plus

Actually Day Two Into Day Three

Bad Weather

Wednesday everyone was tracking the weather for overnight and Thursday. It was supposed to be BAD. The line crossing the Midwest included severe thunderstorms, tornado warnings, and flash flooding. To be on the safe side, the Hvids outside the Power Tech Annex were moved into the annex and Xyra moved me from the tent to the truck for overnight.

After preparations were set it was off to the Snow for another late show.

Overnight, there were big thunderstorms with lots of rain and lightening and thunder, but the rest seemed to bypass Coolspring; which is a-okay with any tent dweller.

Day 3 Plan B

It was still raining Thursday morning and, actually, on and off all day. So I stayed in the truck and read. Caught up on my magazines and got through one of two books.

I’m wearing the Wildflower Pajamas; got to stay in them until Saturday. My sleeping bag and pillow are quite warm and cozy too. I’ll tell you more about them in Friday’s post.

While I was reading and staying dry, Xyra was out taking pictures of engines. Here are a few from that day.

A Jones Oil Engine arrived.

The 18 hp twin ran some more.

A great little Bull Dog

A 20 hp St Mary’s.

This Parmeco is so very quiet.

Book Review

The book I finished that day is The Secret School by Avi. (Xyra read it after I did…on the ride home.)

The books is set in rural Colorado in 1925. (That’s after Samantha but before Kit.) The children of the area all gather each day in a one room schoolhouse. The one teacher teaches all the kids from kindergarten through eighth grade. She covers subjects like reading, writing, grammar, penmanship, mathematics, history, geography, spelling, science, and much more.

The students have to get their all by themselves, there are no buses  So Ida (age 14) and her brother (age 7) drive their family’s Model T car 5 miles to the school. Ida’s friend Tom and his sister Mary ride their family’s mule 7 miles to school. The other students walk however long from their houses.

Ida and Tom are in eighth grade and are set to graduate at the end of the year. If they pass their exams they could go to high school. Apparently, k-12 isn’t guaranteed to them. In fact, even if Ida passes she might not get to go to high school because the school is in another town and she has to find room and board so she can stay there. That costs money their family doesn’t have. All the money is focused on keeping the sheep farm running. Tom is in a similar situation, but he wants to build and invent things.

Near the end of the school year the teacher’s mother gets sick and needs the teacher to stay with her. So she leaves. The school board doesn’t have time to find a replacement and doesn’t see the need to do so. That means all the students have to repeat the school year.

Tom and Ida are upset. So are the others. Tom suggests that Ida continue teaching the rest of the year. That’s when the fun begins. Ida learns a lot about teaching, working on her own schoolwork, keeping up with her farm chores, and much more. Her concern for a fellow student trashes the secret and a whole new set of challenges arise.

This story was really cool. If you’ve ever played school…this goes to a whole new level. It was a fun read too. There could have been a bit more detail with regards to the lifestyle and daily happenings in this area of the country at that time, but it was still good. The main thing you do learn about life in 1925 is just how different school was back then.

Xyra's review

Doll Diaries Giveaway!

Doll diaries is sponsoring a great giveaway via Springfield Collection. You can see more about it and enter here.

I had a hard time deciding what to pick. Click here to see what I mean. My favorites included the  Blazer with Dress, Camo Shirt with Jeans, Peacoat, Purple Dress, and Summer Dress. I decided that the Camo Shirt and Jeans would make me "happy, happy, happy."

American Girl Sale!

American Girl has slashed a few prices really low! Included is McKenna's dog, Copper. Just note he is listed as "goldenoodle." Only $7 While supplies last.

Best wishes,

Melody

Ps. Don't forget if you want more information on the power museum go to their website.

Coolspring Day 2

Tent camping is awesome! It was cool overnight, but not too bad, and the sun shone throughout the day. Warm enough to wear shorts and a tee shirt. Today I’m wearing my Kit movie tee shirt and khaki shorts. (We’ll talk about the movie in a future post. Oh, my DVD is still stuck in our old DVD player.) Back in 2008, before the movie was released, AG ran a promotion where you could get matching girl and doll movie tee shirts—Xyra took advantage of the offer. I get a lot of wear out of mine.

Anyway, back to Coolspring!

We started the day with a big breakfast from Villela Meats in the food court. Eggs, bacon, sausage, home fires, and a pancake…YUM! They have the BEST bacon and sausage. Then it was off to the Power Tech Annex building to set the display posters for the Hvid/oil engine event.

When things were in place Xyra and I went to the Power Tech building to see the 35 hp DeLeVergne Horsnby-Akaroyd engine. [Xyra sometimes calls it the Bruce-Dan. Something about the musician’s and actor’s first names creating a mnemonic to remember the name of the engine.]

This is Xyra’s favorite engine at the museum. (Oops, it’s slipped a spot to #2…behind the Snow.) She says watching the movement and listening to the sounds of the engine working is very soothing. Almost hypnotic. She has a lot of pictures of this one from previous visits.

From the exhibits Power Tech Tour: "This 35 hp engine was actually the Model HA built by DeLaVergne of New York City. It was a licensee of the English Horsby-Akroyd. Built about 1902, it was a low pressure oil engine capable of burning the crude that it pumped. It was used in York Station, a Buckeye Pipeline installation near Zanesville, Ohio. It came to Coolspring in 1969 on the old Reo truck."

It wasn’t running this morning, so we’ll see it again later. This part of the engine is really neat to watch! You’ll see what I mean.

In the very same building is a 175 hp Otto. Can you find me?

It was built in Philadelphia in 1925. This is the only surviving 175 hp Otto, its 4 brothers are gone. The Otto weighs 25 tons and the flywheels are over 9 feet in diameter. It’s purpose was to power a pump to pump water. The Deane water pump is on the left and the engine on the right. When in use, the pump delivered 1.5 million gallons of water daily to Brookeville.

This is the Otto’s exhaust pipe. Impressive, eh?

Then we were off to the Gift Shop! The ladies who work there are lots of fun.

In this corner you can find coffee mugs, yo-yos, pins, mouse pads, tee shirts bedazzled with the museum logo, can cozies, and much more.

If you plan to stay a while there are a couple nice chairs for chatting.

And the sale table is outside. Must check for the bargains. Xyra has a couple of shirts like the ones here.

Then we headed up the little path to see what was happening with the Snow. First you cross a bridge.

Then go up the stairs. And Voila! One huge engine!

Remember yesterday I mentioned the 18 foot flywheels. This is me next to one of them.

This section allows access to one of the pistons.

And this is one of the tools used to work on it.

Back down to the Power Tech Annex where they were working on Tim’s 18hp twin Renfrew. They belted it to the tractor to get it started. It ran for a bit, but needed some adjustments.

Here I am on the tractor. I was told it is a 1939 John Deere H. It has been on the property since before it was a museum. Cool, huh?

I really don’t advise standing on the hood of the tractor. You could get hurt or hurt the tractor.

Since it is still National Iced Tea Month

Ah, yes, we made our own iced tea today! Here is another way to do it.

Fill you cup with water, add the tea bag, and fruit (optional, we had blueberries on hand) and just let it sit. This method requires patience; it’s not fast, but does work and is quite tasty.

That’s all for day 2. More tomorrow!

Best wishes,

Melody

Ps. Reminder if you want more information about the engines and events at Coolspring Power Museum check out their website.

Coolspring Day 1

We’re back in the land of the Internet connected!

Last Monday at this time, Xyra and I were cleaning and packing for the trip to Coolspring Power Museum in Coolspring, PA. [Coolspring is between Punxatawny and Brookeville. It has a population of 150.] Let's jump ahead to Tuesday.

We left shortly after 8 in the morning (travel cup of hot tea in hand) and headed west. After driving 5 hours we arrived at the Coolspring Power Museum.

Note: When you go to places where machinery is working you need to follow the rules and be careful. Stay a safe distance from moving parts, observe any rope barriers, and wear proper attire (I wore safety shoes/work boots all week long).

Once there we found a great little spot among a few trees behind the Nate Lillibridge Station (or Miller building) and Xyra set up the tent. We had great neighbors.

The lamb you can see in the first picture is came from Coolspring a couple of years ago. It wears a Coolspring tee shirt and is named Bella. Those in the know will understand why. I brought my green monkey with me. Felicity stayed at home.

Then we were off to visit with friends and take a few more pictures.

This is one of three engines we brought to show. It is a 9hp (horsepower) Hoag oil engine. An engine’s horsepower indicates how much power and force and energy is created. The larger the hp, the bigger the engine, the greater power generated. At least that’s how I understand it…the definitions I found were slightly confusing.

An oil engine is designed to use kerosene for fuel. Click here then click the “Jargon” tab on the left of the page and scroll down for more details about oil engines.

After dinner from Villela Meats we headed up the hill to see the museum’s long-term project…the 600 hp Snow. 

This type of engine was used to pump natural gas through pipelines from one place to another. It is 65 feet long and has an 18 foot diameter flywheel that alone weighs 20 tons. The full engine weighs in at approximately 140 tons.

While we waited, I pretended to drive Professor M’s retired postal vehicle. It’s really cool! Then I found a comfy spot in a golf cart.

When everything was lined up properly they started the engine…WOW! Was it cool and it sounded great! Like a techno song…pass out the glow sticks! Xyra has moved the Snow to the top of her favorite engines list.

That was it for our first day. More to come! Check back tomorrow!

Best wishes,

Melody

Ps. There isn't a lot of room so only one of us could go along. 

If you’re interested in more details than I can give about the museum or the engines I urge you to visit the CPM website and their exhibits page. Better yet, head on over to the museum itself. The next open days are July 20 & 21.

National Iced Tea Month

Yay! June is National Iced Tea Month!

Too cool if I say so myself. :)

Iced tea is an American phenomenon and we've been drinking it since the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair (or so the story goes). There is a great story about it in Tea Time magazine. That same story discusses the original Sweet Tea recipe. That recipe didn't sound anything like the one Lady Decca shared with Xyra a couple of years ago.

Xyra grew up drinking a local grocery store's instant iced tea. It comes powdered like Countrytime Lemonade or Kool-Aid. Now, she's not sure how she used to drink it. It's just too sweet. The best iced tea is fresh brewed not from a powder. [Of course, if you prefer the other that's awesome too.]

One of the ways to make fresh brewed iced tea is with a Mr. Coffee Iced Tea Maker. [We'll cover the other ways in other posts.] This is a fun machine. 

You add water to the machine, fill the pitcher to the line with ice, put your tea in the filter basket - we use 4 regular sized bags: 3 Luzianne and 1 Bigelow Blueberry Harvest - place the pitcher next to the machine and press the button. 

Lanie did the prep work. (We put the tags in the basket for the picture, but they hang out of the basket while brewing. Tag paper doesn't brew as well as the filter paper holding the tea.)

Kirsten went to check it out.

You can put a paper filter in the basket and use loose leaf to brew your tea too. The water that goes through the basket is hot. It stays hot until it hits the ice in the pitcher.

Kaya found the end product, "Yay! We have tea!" First home brewed iced tea of the season - that's always an event.

Most of the time you will still have ice in the pitcher, but it doesn't last long.

Pour out and enjoy!

Trivia! And on Kaya. :)

Did you know that Kaya's has a beautiful horse named Steps High?

Do you have a pet that you are proud of? What kind of pet is it? What is his/her name? Why is he/she special to you?

Found the Picture!

Yesterday I couldn't find this picture, but I did today. This shows the squeezer and holder Xyra has at her desk.

Tea Jewels

Xyra has the cutest charm bracelet. The toggle for the closure is a teaspoon and the charms are...well you can see it for yourself. It was a great find and she wears it a lot.

Next Week - Coolspring!

Just a reminder, we will be away so there won't be any posts next week.

Have a great week!

Best wishes to all!
Melody, Kaya, Kirsten, Lanie, & Xyra