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ar_wahanI spent a considerable sum buying the "Q-towers" and clips so we could put a Yakima rack system on Samurai's Saturn. It was her Christmas present. The boxes have been sitting in the living room by her "spot" since then. I intended to install them today and use the 48" bars that had originally been on my Corolla (but which were too short for the wider Prius). The idea was that she could use the cargo box we bought in August to cart her goods to Suffolk (on my Prius) to cart things back and forth herself in the future, as well as carry her ski gear. AND, to be able to transport our two kayaks herself (especially when she and Mai are on the Cape with us this June) without hijacking my car. In theory, she'd just have to transfer the J-bars from my car to her rack system.
Hmmmph.
In looking at the installation instructions for the Q-towers (which are the things that hold the horizontal bars up, and which attach to the car roof at the top of the windows), I see now that neither of these things is possible. The instructions are customized for a 2002 Saturn sedan, and state clearly that the only cargo box that can be used is a shorter one than ours. I imagine it is because the longer one would unbalance the smaller Saturn. As it is, the box they say she should use is *just* long enough to hold her skis -- another inch, and they'd be too long. (And Mai, who says she is a poor skier -- so far! :P, I can see that changing with a little Samurai incentive -- is taller than Samurai.) Plus, the boxes aren't cheap. Well, she could always lash the skis in their ski bag to the bars, I suppose, but there wouldn't be the security of a locked box.
AND, she apparently is not supposed to use my J-bars for kayaks on her Saturn. That I can readily understand. The Saturn is a short, lightweight car, and the J-bars, which hold the kayaks at an angle on their sides, would be possibly dangerously top heavy. But, she wouldn't be able to mount two kayaks side-by-side on their bellies because the 48" bars are not wide enough. She'd only be able to carry one. And I, frankly, don't like the idea of her or ANYONE going kayaking alone. (If all else failed, on the Cape I'd let her borrow my Prius, although I am known to be ridiculously possessive of it.)
Now, the Yakima catalog shows the different length bars and pictures of the variety of things they can carry. It says, "Different loads require different crossbar lengths, so take a minute to think about your needs, then find the right crossbar length for you." So it sounds as if you aren't limited to length, as long as you start with the minimum length. I know my 58" bars extend beyond the width of the Prius, because I've hit my head on them often enough!
The Saturn-specific instructions don't say anything about a limit to crossbar lengths. So if I got her a set of 58" bars, like I have, she could carry two kayaks side-by-side on their bellies. Fortunately, the bars are the least expensive parts of the system. I'll give the local dealer a call and verify that this would be OK with the Saturn before I pour more money down the drain. (And, I don't have that money right now anyway.)
If I'm correct, then I'll just make sure to get her the longer bars before June, and some way to attach the kayaks, whether via Yakima or other system.
Last night I made a recipe from The Ultimate Rice Cooker Cookbook. I'd ordered two copies at the same time I'd ordered the small rice cooker for Samurai, had everything shipped to her to save on shipping charges('cuz I'm cheap that way), and asked her to bring the second copy home with her during spring break. There are some very interesting recipes in there! It includes "small meal" recipes, which means you aren't just cooking the rice, but vegetables and meat or other proteins at the same time. Kind of like a casserole or one-pot stovetop meal, only steamed instead of baked. And then there are other recipes for the use of the above-the-rice steamer basket.
Today was a lovely spring-like day. We could walk around without our coats, it being in the low 50s. (Of course, in a few months, we'll be thinking that is chilly!) Samurai and I went to the UU service, which was unusual -- "Jazz Theology: The Creative Pulse." Alison made some fascinating analogies between jazz and Unitarian Universalism, and all the music was jazz.
We went to the Route 9 Diner for a late breakfast, brainstormed places she might check out this week to see if she can get an application in for a summer job now (and came up with the same place at the same time, which she said meant we were reading the other's mind again; in this case, I think it's just because I know her interests). I shared![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
starseeking 's comment about her not getting the RA position -- that something bigger and more suitable for her was waiting -- and she appreciated that. She is already planning to do some training with PFLAG in Boston to be someone schools or other places could call to get youth to come in and speak about their experiences, and was wondering if she could get a paid job doing filing or something for them this semester. She's also going to talk to a law professor who taught an undergrad course last semester who thought very highly of her, and who might have some connections.
After we came home, I basically sat around reading because my blood glucose had dropped and I felt shaky (was waiting for the treatment to kick in). She kindly did some "spring cleaning" on my laptop, removing a bunch of "temp" files and also doing something to prevent some never-used programs from loading when Windows XP starts up (such as Kodak Easyshare, which I never use). This thing would take forever to load, and now it springs into action! Arigato, Samurai!
It was just too nice to stay in, so once glucose was up, I went out and started picking up some of the smaller sticks that are littering our front yard from the December ice storm and subsequent winter winds and ice. It looks a little better now. (There is still some snow on the ground.) I don't know what we're going to do with all the larger branches. The main parts we can use for firewood, but not the parts with twigs. The tree guy who came twice after the storm to do work said he could come back to take down the dangerously damaged pine in the spring, and bring his chipper with him to get rid of everything. Or, I could get a brush burning permit and start burning some of it. I see several of our neighbors burning brush now.
It's been a low-key weekend here, which is good. I've been deligent with my physical therapy exercises, and can feel the difference. Spouse played the guitar a bit this afternoon (I could hear him playing inside the house when I was outside picking up sticks). He finally did the dishes (his job) and is now taking a little nap. I think I'll brown some ground beef for spaghetti, then take a quick shower before continuing the rest of dinner prep (I'm not doing the shower first because I don't want the cooking smell to get in my hair!).
That's about it. *pokes you if you've dozed off*
Hmmmph.
In looking at the installation instructions for the Q-towers (which are the things that hold the horizontal bars up, and which attach to the car roof at the top of the windows), I see now that neither of these things is possible. The instructions are customized for a 2002 Saturn sedan, and state clearly that the only cargo box that can be used is a shorter one than ours. I imagine it is because the longer one would unbalance the smaller Saturn. As it is, the box they say she should use is *just* long enough to hold her skis -- another inch, and they'd be too long. (And Mai, who says she is a poor skier -- so far! :P, I can see that changing with a little Samurai incentive -- is taller than Samurai.) Plus, the boxes aren't cheap. Well, she could always lash the skis in their ski bag to the bars, I suppose, but there wouldn't be the security of a locked box.
AND, she apparently is not supposed to use my J-bars for kayaks on her Saturn. That I can readily understand. The Saturn is a short, lightweight car, and the J-bars, which hold the kayaks at an angle on their sides, would be possibly dangerously top heavy. But, she wouldn't be able to mount two kayaks side-by-side on their bellies because the 48" bars are not wide enough. She'd only be able to carry one. And I, frankly, don't like the idea of her or ANYONE going kayaking alone. (If all else failed, on the Cape I'd let her borrow my Prius, although I am known to be ridiculously possessive of it.)
Now, the Yakima catalog shows the different length bars and pictures of the variety of things they can carry. It says, "Different loads require different crossbar lengths, so take a minute to think about your needs, then find the right crossbar length for you." So it sounds as if you aren't limited to length, as long as you start with the minimum length. I know my 58" bars extend beyond the width of the Prius, because I've hit my head on them often enough!
The Saturn-specific instructions don't say anything about a limit to crossbar lengths. So if I got her a set of 58" bars, like I have, she could carry two kayaks side-by-side on their bellies. Fortunately, the bars are the least expensive parts of the system. I'll give the local dealer a call and verify that this would be OK with the Saturn before I pour more money down the drain. (And, I don't have that money right now anyway.)
If I'm correct, then I'll just make sure to get her the longer bars before June, and some way to attach the kayaks, whether via Yakima or other system.
Last night I made a recipe from The Ultimate Rice Cooker Cookbook. I'd ordered two copies at the same time I'd ordered the small rice cooker for Samurai, had everything shipped to her to save on shipping charges('cuz I'm cheap that way), and asked her to bring the second copy home with her during spring break. There are some very interesting recipes in there! It includes "small meal" recipes, which means you aren't just cooking the rice, but vegetables and meat or other proteins at the same time. Kind of like a casserole or one-pot stovetop meal, only steamed instead of baked. And then there are other recipes for the use of the above-the-rice steamer basket.
Today was a lovely spring-like day. We could walk around without our coats, it being in the low 50s. (Of course, in a few months, we'll be thinking that is chilly!) Samurai and I went to the UU service, which was unusual -- "Jazz Theology: The Creative Pulse." Alison made some fascinating analogies between jazz and Unitarian Universalism, and all the music was jazz.
We went to the Route 9 Diner for a late breakfast, brainstormed places she might check out this week to see if she can get an application in for a summer job now (and came up with the same place at the same time, which she said meant we were reading the other's mind again; in this case, I think it's just because I know her interests). I shared
starseeking 's comment about her not getting the RA position -- that something bigger and more suitable for her was waiting -- and she appreciated that. She is already planning to do some training with PFLAG in Boston to be someone schools or other places could call to get youth to come in and speak about their experiences, and was wondering if she could get a paid job doing filing or something for them this semester. She's also going to talk to a law professor who taught an undergrad course last semester who thought very highly of her, and who might have some connections.After we came home, I basically sat around reading because my blood glucose had dropped and I felt shaky (was waiting for the treatment to kick in). She kindly did some "spring cleaning" on my laptop, removing a bunch of "temp" files and also doing something to prevent some never-used programs from loading when Windows XP starts up (such as Kodak Easyshare, which I never use). This thing would take forever to load, and now it springs into action! Arigato, Samurai!
It was just too nice to stay in, so once glucose was up, I went out and started picking up some of the smaller sticks that are littering our front yard from the December ice storm and subsequent winter winds and ice. It looks a little better now. (There is still some snow on the ground.) I don't know what we're going to do with all the larger branches. The main parts we can use for firewood, but not the parts with twigs. The tree guy who came twice after the storm to do work said he could come back to take down the dangerously damaged pine in the spring, and bring his chipper with him to get rid of everything. Or, I could get a brush burning permit and start burning some of it. I see several of our neighbors burning brush now.
It's been a low-key weekend here, which is good. I've been deligent with my physical therapy exercises, and can feel the difference. Spouse played the guitar a bit this afternoon (I could hear him playing inside the house when I was outside picking up sticks). He finally did the dishes (his job) and is now taking a little nap. I think I'll brown some ground beef for spaghetti, then take a quick shower before continuing the rest of dinner prep (I'm not doing the shower first because I don't want the cooking smell to get in my hair!).
That's about it. *pokes you if you've dozed off*
