The end.
-
This was the last weekday of summer break. Teacher inservice begins on
Monday morning. It’ll be the first time reporting in person (for me) since
March 13,...
2 years ago
Monday, August 31, 2009
Friday, August 28, 2009
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Sisters
Last night I had the pleasure of photographing two very cute little sisters. Here is a sneak preview.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Monday, August 17, 2009
How To : Motorcycle Oil Change
Today I will go through the steps on how to change the oil on a 2008 Yamaha Fz6.
But first... in the grand tradition of me, before I even get to touch the bike, I was having issues. You see, I did not have a ratcheting socket wrench thingie in my garage, so I went to the local shop to pick one up. I also grabbed a decent size set of metric sockets (10mm - 20mm), and a few socket wrench extensions... Hey, you never know when you'll need some extension. Anyway...
I started to remove the wrench from the plastic packaging, it wouldn't have it, nope not gonna let my new tool go. I pulled and pulled, and snapped a few tiny pieces of plastic off, but alas, the pesky plastic packaging did not want to budge. So... I grabbed a kitchen knife (since I was in the kitchen) and used it to pry the plastic away as I pressed the release button on the back of the wrench, POP, it finally came off. Yeah, I was having issues... but once the tool was finally free from it's plastic packaging I was ready to go...
Step one: Gather up all your tools; the oil, a drip pan, some gloves, your ratcheting socket wrench thingie and all it's accessories, a funnel, and anything else you think you may need.
Lay out all your tools close to your working area for easy access. Remember you'll most likely have oil on you hands later and you do not want to go touching other things in the garage, like door knobs... but then I'm a girl, and I prefer non oily door knobs...
Side note:
I LOVE these gloves... no powder and super strong.
Before taking a wrench to the bike, please please prob her up on the center stand. This will com in handy later.
Now, turn the bike on and let it warm up a bit, not hot, just for a minute. I'm not sure you HAVE to warm up the bike, but I think it helps move the oil around after sitting for a while. I also like to hear the bike rev, since I will not be able to turn it back on until I'm finished. VermmmmVermmmmmm (go right ahead, wake the neighbors! They won't say anything to you while your reeving the engine and holding tools :-) Ok, that's good. Don't forget to turn the bike back off.
Locate the drain bolt. On the FZ6 it is located on the "driver's side" of the bike, right near the foot petal. on the lower end of the engine.
Find the right size socket for the drain bolt, turns out mine is a 17mm (metric) (the kid behind the parts counter in the Yamaha dealership swore it was a 12mm, good thing I bought a nice big set of sockets).
Pick the proper extension. I chose the longest extension I had, for two reasons. One, if I slip the wrench while turning the bolt, I will not hit or scratch the bike. Two, so I have better leverage.
Here is why we needed to motorcycle up on the center stand. You need to unscrew the drain bolt. this will take a good amount of strength, and you do now want your bike teetering on a side stand with the possibility of falling over.
You can do it !
Muster up some strength and hold the wrench parallel with the bolt ( to prevent stripping of the bolt). This may take a little work, but if I can... you can. Oh yeah, and PLEASE make sure your drip pan is properly located under the bike to catch the oil. Once that bolt comes out.. the oil will too. Oh and don't drop the bolt, or you'll be fishing for it in nasty stinky dirty oil.
The oil will not come BLASTING out of the bike, (unless of course you forgot to turn off the motorcycle ;-) ... But the oil will pour out rather quickly.
Ughs, (hiding my eyes in shame) this is not the color oil you want to see coming out of your bike... this is a sign that I waited WAY to long to change the oil.
You now have one more part to remove from the bike.
But first, inspect the drain bolt and determine if it needs to be replaced and if the washer needs replacement. Mine seems ok, for at least one more oil change.
Now grab your strap wrench and wrap it around the oil filter. The filter is located right above the drain bolt.
It takes a little bit of work, but ti will unscrew. (you can buy a fancy filter wrench adapter, it's up to you). Once off, there will be more oil pouring out of the bike... It's ok... let it. Check your oil pan to make sure your under the dripping oil.
My strap wrench, I love this tool. I actually bought it to help me open cans in the kitchen... but it works even better at removing oil filters.
Now, go get your new oil filter....
And this, my friends, is where my day almost went downhill...
I sat the filters next to each other to get a clean vs. dirty shot and realized something was terribly wrong. It's hard to see in the photo since the filter on the right is actually closer to the camera. They LOOK the same... but the new one (on the right) was a lot smaller, even the part that screwed in was smaller... To top it off... it was shorter then the original, shorter may not have been a problem... but smaller diameter = no screw back on bike.
Enter every cuss word know to man... Oh... it's OK to cuss up a storm today, even if it is Sunday, your in the garage, sweating up a storm, you just emptied your bike of its life blood, and the damn kid behind the parts counter who was talking to you like you were some widdle girly who knows nothing about her motorcycle, hands you the wrong filter. To top it off it's Sunday and there is NO way Yamaha is going to be open to exchange the part.
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
*#!@*@#!*
Then breath.... bag up the filters, go to the local car parts store, and hope and pray they have a matching part.
HALLELUJAH we have a match...
Now back to work.
Pour some NEW oil in to the filter, just a little bit, and then rub some oil around the filter's rubber O-Ring and also inspect the O-ring to make sure it's in place and not damaged.
Screw the filter on to the bike, HAND screw it tight, do not over tighten. As much as I hate bike oil on my hands, this was the only way I could get a good strong grip on the filter.
Find your drain bolt, hopefully it's not still swimming in the old oil ;-) and screw it back in to place. Wrench to "tight" then muster up a little more strength and give it a good last little twist to make sure it's tight. We do not want this to vibrate loose while our on the road riding. But we also don't want it TOO tight that you will not be able to get it off at the next oil change (go that? :-)
Find the oil cap, (located on the opposite side of the motor near the top) unscrew it.
Back on the other side of the bike, wipe off any oil from the engine and check for leaks and double check the tightness of the filter and bolt.
There you go... YOU just did your very first oil change on a motorcycle.
Doesn't that feel GREAT!?!? For me, it is a great feeling, I love not being dependent on others when it comes to basic motorcycle maintenance. Besides you just saved your self about $100 in labor charges.
Time to go stretch her legs..... Vermmmmmmmmmmm
(or as my cruiser friends like to say about my bike… Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee :-D
But first... in the grand tradition of me, before I even get to touch the bike, I was having issues. You see, I did not have a ratcheting socket wrench thingie in my garage, so I went to the local shop to pick one up. I also grabbed a decent size set of metric sockets (10mm - 20mm), and a few socket wrench extensions... Hey, you never know when you'll need some extension. Anyway...
I started to remove the wrench from the plastic packaging, it wouldn't have it, nope not gonna let my new tool go. I pulled and pulled, and snapped a few tiny pieces of plastic off, but alas, the pesky plastic packaging did not want to budge. So... I grabbed a kitchen knife (since I was in the kitchen) and used it to pry the plastic away as I pressed the release button on the back of the wrench, POP, it finally came off. Yeah, I was having issues... but once the tool was finally free from it's plastic packaging I was ready to go...
Step one: Gather up all your tools; the oil, a drip pan, some gloves, your ratcheting socket wrench thingie and all it's accessories, a funnel, and anything else you think you may need.
Lay out all your tools close to your working area for easy access. Remember you'll most likely have oil on you hands later and you do not want to go touching other things in the garage, like door knobs... but then I'm a girl, and I prefer non oily door knobs...
Side note:I LOVE these gloves... no powder and super strong.
Before taking a wrench to the bike, please please prob her up on the center stand. This will com in handy later.
Now, turn the bike on and let it warm up a bit, not hot, just for a minute. I'm not sure you HAVE to warm up the bike, but I think it helps move the oil around after sitting for a while. I also like to hear the bike rev, since I will not be able to turn it back on until I'm finished. VermmmmVermmmmmm (go right ahead, wake the neighbors! They won't say anything to you while your reeving the engine and holding tools :-) Ok, that's good. Don't forget to turn the bike back off.
Locate the drain bolt. On the FZ6 it is located on the "driver's side" of the bike, right near the foot petal. on the lower end of the engine.
Find the right size socket for the drain bolt, turns out mine is a 17mm (metric) (the kid behind the parts counter in the Yamaha dealership swore it was a 12mm, good thing I bought a nice big set of sockets).
Pick the proper extension. I chose the longest extension I had, for two reasons. One, if I slip the wrench while turning the bolt, I will not hit or scratch the bike. Two, so I have better leverage.
Here is why we needed to motorcycle up on the center stand. You need to unscrew the drain bolt. this will take a good amount of strength, and you do now want your bike teetering on a side stand with the possibility of falling over.You can do it !
Muster up some strength and hold the wrench parallel with the bolt ( to prevent stripping of the bolt). This may take a little work, but if I can... you can. Oh yeah, and PLEASE make sure your drip pan is properly located under the bike to catch the oil. Once that bolt comes out.. the oil will too. Oh and don't drop the bolt, or you'll be fishing for it in nasty stinky dirty oil.
The oil will not come BLASTING out of the bike, (unless of course you forgot to turn off the motorcycle ;-) ... But the oil will pour out rather quickly.Ughs, (hiding my eyes in shame) this is not the color oil you want to see coming out of your bike... this is a sign that I waited WAY to long to change the oil.
You now have one more part to remove from the bike.
But first, inspect the drain bolt and determine if it needs to be replaced and if the washer needs replacement. Mine seems ok, for at least one more oil change.
Now grab your strap wrench and wrap it around the oil filter. The filter is located right above the drain bolt.
It takes a little bit of work, but ti will unscrew. (you can buy a fancy filter wrench adapter, it's up to you). Once off, there will be more oil pouring out of the bike... It's ok... let it. Check your oil pan to make sure your under the dripping oil.
Thanks to the brilliant designers of the FZ6... the oil from the filter will drip down the engine and land right on the exhaust pipes... Oh Joy... I totally forgot that part. It's not a BAD thing, but for the next few miles I ride I will smell burning oil. So just wipe up as much as you can. (good excuse to wash the bike when you're all done) let it all drip out.
My strap wrench, I love this tool. I actually bought it to help me open cans in the kitchen... but it works even better at removing oil filters.
Now, go get your new oil filter....And this, my friends, is where my day almost went downhill...
I sat the filters next to each other to get a clean vs. dirty shot and realized something was terribly wrong. It's hard to see in the photo since the filter on the right is actually closer to the camera. They LOOK the same... but the new one (on the right) was a lot smaller, even the part that screwed in was smaller... To top it off... it was shorter then the original, shorter may not have been a problem... but smaller diameter = no screw back on bike.
Enter every cuss word know to man... Oh... it's OK to cuss up a storm today, even if it is Sunday, your in the garage, sweating up a storm, you just emptied your bike of its life blood, and the damn kid behind the parts counter who was talking to you like you were some widdle girly who knows nothing about her motorcycle, hands you the wrong filter. To top it off it's Sunday and there is NO way Yamaha is going to be open to exchange the part.
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
*#!@*@#!*
Then breath.... bag up the filters, go to the local car parts store, and hope and pray they have a matching part.
HALLELUJAH we have a match...
Now back to work.Pour some NEW oil in to the filter, just a little bit, and then rub some oil around the filter's rubber O-Ring and also inspect the O-ring to make sure it's in place and not damaged.
Screw the filter on to the bike, HAND screw it tight, do not over tighten. As much as I hate bike oil on my hands, this was the only way I could get a good strong grip on the filter.
Find your drain bolt, hopefully it's not still swimming in the old oil ;-) and screw it back in to place. Wrench to "tight" then muster up a little more strength and give it a good last little twist to make sure it's tight. We do not want this to vibrate loose while our on the road riding. But we also don't want it TOO tight that you will not be able to get it off at the next oil change (go that? :-)
Find the oil cap, (located on the opposite side of the motor near the top) unscrew it.
Grab your funnel and start pouring in the oil, the FZ6 took around 3qts.
Ahhhh nice clean oil... glug glug glug glug, She's a happy bike now.
Locate the dipstick, of the FZ6 it is about 6" under the oil cap. It's hard to see in the photo, but the oil level is in the middle of the cross marks... This is a good thing. Turn on the bike, let the oil move all around, and then turn off the bike, wait a minute and then check the oil level again... Add or remove oil if needed.
Ahhhh nice clean oil... glug glug glug glug, She's a happy bike now.
Locate the dipstick, of the FZ6 it is about 6" under the oil cap. It's hard to see in the photo, but the oil level is in the middle of the cross marks... This is a good thing. Turn on the bike, let the oil move all around, and then turn off the bike, wait a minute and then check the oil level again... Add or remove oil if needed.
Back on the other side of the bike, wipe off any oil from the engine and check for leaks and double check the tightness of the filter and bolt.
There you go... YOU just did your very first oil change on a motorcycle.
Doesn't that feel GREAT!?!? For me, it is a great feeling, I love not being dependent on others when it comes to basic motorcycle maintenance. Besides you just saved your self about $100 in labor charges.
Time to go stretch her legs..... Vermmmmmmmmmmm
(or as my cruiser friends like to say about my bike… Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee :-D
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Seaside NJ 09'
Here are a bunch of photos I took down the shore in Seaside NJ, and I just absolutely love them!
Friday, August 7, 2009
OOB
I found this really cool effect the other day called "OOB" or Out Of Borders. OOB is when you take a photo of, well anything, and frame out a section and then leave parts of the subject hanging out of the frame.
Tricky sounding, I know, but way cool.
I read through the "how to" and thought to myself... HECK I can do that!
After a few minutes of digging through "piles and piles" ;-) of digital files I happened upon this old photo of my dog. There she is just lying on a white sheet with her legs sticking out. Perfect! The image has just the right amount of perspective I was looking for, AND, she has a body part that can "hang out of frame"
After following all the directions to a "T"……. VUALLA! (do not ask, I am really not sure how to spell that) It came out better than I had hoped for.
A River ran through it
Here is a shot of the Delaware River. I did a lot of edits to this one. I really can't remember all that I did at the moment, but it did involve a bunch of layers and masks.
I know I used a "selective color" layer to boost the blues and greens. I pushed the contrast slightly. And a whole bunch of other things magically happened while poking around with different layers. Last I enhanced the sun rays and clouds, to give it a more spiritual look.
I'm pleased without it came out. Not overly joyous but pleased.
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