Owww! Dammit!

You know you're getting old when you start having medical maladies you Dad (or Mum I guess) should be the one having. Specifically I've got gout.
Gout is a build up of uric acid in your blood which then crystalizes in your joints. Yeah its just as much fun as it sounds like... For me my right foot swells up and gets crunchy and sore. It was the worst a week ago when I couldn't walk without crutches. I went to the ER, they gave me some pills and the next day I was much better.
Fast forward to this week and I've managed to set it off again. Apparently thats pretty common, yay... The ER is much too expensive and is really the wrong venue for this sort of thing and its difficult to get in to the doctor's office with my schedule so I'm thinking to try a CVS minute clinic. Theres one right on my way home...

Wenzel

Well over a year ago I picked up a Wenzel 1887 lantern, I mentioned it on the blog: http://curtsotherblog.blogspot.com/2009/11/and-7.html
but I had no luck getting it to work right so I hung it in the garage and basically ignored it. Recently I've had some great successes bringing 3 lanterns my in-laws gave me back to life with very little drama so I figured I'd revisit the Wenzel.
I'm not exactly sure what it is I did to the thing (patience maybe?) but I got it lit and I've been able to relight it again with little trouble. I had so much fun with that I made a video which you can access here.



Then I realized that the issue with the pump is not the pump itself its the overly strong spring in the NRV (non return valve) which keeps the pressure in the tank. So I've had that out and played with it and gotten it better so the pump is usable but now it doesn't seal well. Oops, time to order parts!

Birthday Question

My birthday is coming up and I've planned myself a party for Feb 5, if you're in the Winchendon area stop on by ;). Anyway Angie is really put out by this. I don't know (she won't tell me) if she was going to plan something or not but apparently it really bothers her that I've planned my own party. When I turned 30 she planned me a kick ass surprise party and maybe it bothers her that I haven't given one for her?

Anyway how do you feel about planning your own party?