a house, a tent, and a sheath

OK, so today as part of school I made Anna's Bitty a house out of a cardboard box so she can play as though Bitty has a house to sleep in.
Oh, didn't i tell you? Bitty is Anna's stuffed unicorn that she's had for at least four years at this paint, and they are almost inseparable...

I also helped to plan how we will make a tent for my cousin Nathan's Brownybear to sleep with it's sleeping bag in.

As for me, I made myself a sheath for my blue bat/sword thing from my tae-kwon-do class. i made it so it will sit across my back at an angle that is comfortable to grab and pull my sword from. Now, most sheaths that people think of today hang from your left hip if you are right handed, and from your right hip if you are left handed. But for me, i find it most comfortable when its across my back with the handle on the same side as the hand you will hold it in. It is held in place by two strips of cloth criss-crossing my chest and connecting to the sheath.

tractors, mowers, and gravel

OK, so in the last week I've been on a big tractor with a lift able bucket, and a riding mower.

the big one, the tractor, I was on because Uncle Alan had ordered gravel to make a new pad beside the garage, and we were using the tractor to smooth the gravel that he placed with a rented Bobcat. I got to help smooth the gravel in the pile of extra into a level "platform" with the tractor, and so was allowed to drive it by myself, and operate the bucket.

The riding mower I did the next day, and I used it to mow a fairly large chunk of the backyard, and one of the side yards, as well as part of the front yard. Since I had been on the big tractor recently and the controls were pretty similar I was able to get on and basically start with no instructions. (good for me!)

We bought a snow blade for the big tractor to level the gravel, and i haven't gotten a chance to use it yet, but I'm hoping i might be able to use that one in the next few days.

fun times.....

Since my last blog I've had a few fun experiences like...

When I helped my aunt Nan move to a different apartment. I got to help because she didn't want to have to box up all the loose stuff for the movers, so we helped her with those things, and the movers got all the furniture the next day. There were a lot of trash sacks filled with non-breakable stuff, and since she lived on the second floor and had a balcony overlooking the parking lot so we just threw the bags off the balcony to the ground, and I went over to catch the bags as they landed on the ground, although I had some trouble doing so... I also got to disconnect her computer.

Ive also made a do nothing machine that actually does two things, it will sort peas... and it will draw an Ellipse (oval). I also got a few laughs reading a comic book that was making fun of Star Wars....

That's about all for now, bye

projects

OK, I'm going to jump ahead to being here in Ohio.

At this point I've been in school for around three weeks and am kinda having fun. I have to do a page of math, work on my physics textbook, and do my "Here There Be Dragons" assignment. On Mondays I do a double workload of math and some physics. And around lunchtime I get to go to Grandma and Grandpa's house for an overnight stay and to work on projects with Grandpa. During this time I've learned to use a variety of tools, like a table saw, a lathe, a bench grinder, an electric sander, a drill press, a hot glue gun, a basic drill, and a jig-saw. I've also watched Grandpa use a nail gun. We've made a birdhouse, a softball bat, and a tic-tac-toe set. When I got back from the last visit I got to help my Uncle Alan wire a new outlet into the wall and mount a new TV in his and Aunt Rebecca's bedroom.