Saturday, October 10, 2009

Uh-Oh

...Something big at Skunk Works, North Campus supposedly went "bang." I may be kinda busy.

Update: It did, only it was more like "sizzle." And then, I'm told, "it healed itself." Um, copper, bronze, stainless steel and Teflon don't actually heal. Something -- something unknown! -- changed and bought us an (unknown) amount of time, is all.

Looks like I will be busy. I had hoped to attend the Fall meet of the Indiana Historical Radio Society today but they are an early-rising bunch (the event started at 0800; by 1200, the packing-up will begin!) and I spent my get-ready time on the phone, so that's off. :-( I dislike missing them; there's always interesting stuff to look at, along with items I shouldn't buy, and friends of long standing who I see but rarely.

Failing Skunk Works stuff permitting, I am gonna housepaint today -- some of the new color, some (in visible-from-the-street places) to match the original color, 'cos I may not get the whole place painted. OTOH, there's always next weekend, right?

Symmetry: vacation week started with an unplanned and unwanted sick day; it ends with an unplanned work day, though I can't say I'm sneering at the extra pay.

3 comments:

Turk Turon said...

Good luck!

I hope it's not too hot and not too high.

And I hope you have a spare one handy.

Dr. StrangeGun said...

There's one circumstance that can heal itself...

Tin whisker or other thin conductor bridging something in a tolerant HV network. Conduction occurs, conductor goes BANG, circuit oscillates for a short bit at the perturbance and then other for the smoke and chaff, everything's fine.

I had a second-hand RCA 36" TV that did that on a regular basis until I pulled the back off, discharged the tube, and vacuumed/brushed the hell out of it.

Roberta X said...

Alas, this was not that sort of failure.