If you have recently visited the site of JD Plumma , you discovered that he is now playing with a new "toy" called a High Power Tesla Coil. Having never heard of such a thing, I followed his link to educate myself so the two of us could have an intelligent conversation while sitting around the "fire pit" this summer.
The advertisement caught my immediate attention, "Ideal for special effects, advertising, attention getter, and hobbyist familiar with high voltage". The High Power Tesla Coil can produce one million volts.
However, I did not know that the the Plumma had already acquired his new toy. He had a lot of success with his initial experiments with the Tesla Coil, that is until he turned up the power to "high". The picture on the left is the former residence of the Plumma and family. The electrical shock wave is clearly visible due to the electrical current generated, the smoke that you see at the base of the lightening bolt is their home going up in smoke. It was definitely an attention getter, it got the attention of the LA Fire Department, LA Police Department, FAA, FBI, Homeland Security, and both military bases. Elmendorf A.F.B. and Fort Richardson Army Base went on full military alert. Fortunately, Ms. Plumma and girls were on a Girl Scout Cookie drive so they were not home, unfortunately they now have no home to return to, fortunately they do have a small summer home located at the HITWRA that they can stay until the insurance company makes a determination as to if experimentation with a "High Power Tesla Coil" is covered in their homeowners insurance.
The first signs of spring are starting to show, a few weeks back, all the "boys" in LA went on my grandson's 21st Birthday fishing trip to the upper Kenai River. Having little or no luck, they have decided to do their fishing a little closer to home. I thought this was a great picture of Eric and Heath getting in a little "late season" ice fishing on Spenard Lake. Their success was similar to their experience on the Upper Kenai River, except they did catch one tire that happened to fit one of the their "chevies". They also caught a "Volkswagon Hood", but since none of them had a Volkswagon, they released it back into the lake. After two unsuccessful attempts at fishing, perhaps they will now be patient and wait just a few more weeks when the Anchor River will open to fishing on May 18th.
Fearing the worse in regards to the "spring runoff" at the Hole In The Wall Recreational Area, I took the advice of JD Plumma, who has been an advocate of Global Warming. The "Bear Den" is located at the base of the glacier and susceptible to the worst flooding. I spent the day, with the assistance from Golden Granny and my trusty plow truck to raise the "Bear Den" a few feet. It is unbelievable what a snow plow will do when you apply the hydraulics to the blade in other ways other than plowing snow. If Papa Bear will take a little time from fishing, I left enough overhang that he should be able to build a nice deck so he and Mama Bear can sit outside and enjoy a good view of the Inlet and sitting sun. At least Mama Bear will not have to "walk the plank" (Before Photo) after she has had a little fermented juice of the grape. Now, seeing Mama Bear crawling up the ladder (After Photo) to their den under the same conditions may be a lot of fun to watch. At least, Papa Bear will not be able to hide his personal stash of freshly cured salmon eggs under his den without us knowing.The "Wolf Den" is already raised, although not nearly as secure as the "Bear Den" but perhaps with a little more dunnage, we can raise it a few more feet to clear the high water. We were also going to raise the "Moose Wallow", but after finding out all of the environmental impact statements that we would have to file, because "somebody" declared it a natural habitat area and named it the "Kroc Pond" , we decided not to open that can of worms and will hope for the best. After this last improvement adventure, I have to wonder why everyone built their homes in the low lying areas. The "Duck House" is the only structure that "run off" was taken into consideration and it was built built on high ground. Some may seem that this story is similar to the "Three Little Pigs", I prefer to refer to it as applying the eight "P's".
