old3bob

Great looking boards! Righto on the getting back up and then down again. It would nice to have 50 cents on every dollar spent on crowns and root canals, no false teeth yet, oh wait I do have two small bridges- dam. Going to see a doctor soon since my balance is starting to get worse? I've got so many projects to do, and regular maint. on things from A-Z besides whatever honey-do's needed for my wife. (I even figured out how to fix her very old and new sewing machines) It would be nice to have a strong kid around to help with things! Speaking of painting I have a classic car and truck that need a lot of TLC in body and paint work, not sure I'll get those done any time soon besides I'm not experienced with the newer auto paints and paint guns. (Last time I painted a car was with good old Dupont enamel and a suction feed gun) Your humor here is appreciated Nungali ;-) Bob

Its been years since I've refinished a wooden table top. Some things I've come across: 1. be aware not to get too aggressive with sanding, namely with 80-120 grit paper and a belt or machine type sander! Such grit might be used if done super carefully by continuous movement of the sander but that grit can easily dig too deep and leave grooves! (never use coarse paper on veneer tops, most are very thin!) 2. the wood being sanded and the light you have on the project can make a big difference. for instance without good light and checking from different angles uneven sanding and missing spots is more likely, and if you apply a finish after those errors they will probably stand out clearly and need to be gone back over. That is not so bad if you have lots of depth of wood to re-sand but if you have a thin wood or a veneer re-sanding may go right through it and destroy your table. I don't have much experience in using chemical strippers and strong solvents to remove an old finish but i'd say even more caution is called for with them! For instance I once used a stripper on an old piano and it removed the surface coat alright but it also lifted out the grain sealer that I should have been aware of it doing, thus making the refinish job difficult and unsatisfactory) 3. choice of finish is a not always easy to make being there are all the different brands and types of finish available and the how or where the table is being used. I tend to like a penetrating wood stain coated with tung oil. Btw all tung oil is not created equal. Some tends to leave more on the surface which is ok depending on usage, another may penetrate down into the wood better and give a cleaner like coat. Do not rush the finish job and follow its directions closely or regret is likely. have fun and satisfaction on a job well done

yea, there is "the be true to your school aspect" although many of the "eastern" schools (thus their teachers) don't agree on certain basic or central stuff yet many tend to proclaim self-realization as being central. Such is similar with many religions, for instance Christianity, Islam and the Jews all proclaiming the same God yet they are often at deadly war with one another.

love can be fun...

Sorry to hear that, and of the extra disappointment after doing all the careful and time consuming sanding!! I've used that water based varnish before and don't trust it much, like you said it is not as durable, more so for certain areas. In recent years they have come out with latex paint that supposedly has built in primer. I don't know how much to trust that? I have no problem with and like using tried and true quality primers. Btw some of the pre-primed wood or fiber product moulding one might buy could have been coated with low grade primer that can result in the weather degrading the paint job much more quickly. Also I never use fiber product or particle board stuff where any moisture may get to it after which it can start to swell or crumble apart! All my new window mouldings are of real wood carefully primed and then painted. I recently put new baseboard in 3 rooms and a hallway, it was a lot of work to constantly get down on the floor sideways (to find the studs for nailing the boards to the wall) for an older me who is not in the greatest of shape. (not to mention pulling the old baseboards without doing any damage to the sheetrock) that's interesting about the leaf sanding...

"Still not clear about..." don't worry (although it doesn't sound like you are) for medical science doesn't really know what causes the heart to beat but they have figured out how to zap with it electricity to get it beating again...

that sounds kind of like a contradiction of your earlier verdict of: "And your revolutionary (non-Buddhist) reinterpretation of Buddhism comes down to "there is"? Btw, one might see some parallels or "family resemblance" with that in the Isha Upanishad, it can be found in English thus one doesn't need to know Sanskrit or Pali for it.

sounds like warm, warmer, hot...

"there is", is the beginning of the Buddha's quote on the major point of Buddhism is it not or did you skip that or are you saying that's not good enough for your expert sounding self? Btw one should not assume what one may have read or not. Also what is non-Buddhist? (some Buddhists say we are all Buddhas but some just don't know it yet and the Buddha also said, "wonder of wonders all beings are truly enlightened" thus he didn't exclude old3bob) Also in your opinion which sect is the truest or poorest out of others when it comes to being Buddhist or non-Buddhist? Also did not the Buddha warn about laying down the raft of Buddhism in certain ways instead of unending attachment to it?

with it and awareness of it "may all beings be happy" What is the smile on the Buddha's face?

good and evil, lets see, good (and law or Dharma) arises from Source but evil does not for evil is the theft, corruption and twisting of intrinsic goodness. Why? because its based on fear, fear which has aspects of or brings about malice, greed, violence, lies, etc.. Overcome those within oneself and they can not assail one from without. (willful evil done by a being is different from bad/destructive effects like those of a tornado and other natural disasters to us)

sounds greek to me, anyway "there is" as said by the Buddha is not of negation but of affirmation, which seems to be a four letter word to some Buddhists who sound like they would even negate the life force as it also being a "delusion"?

'I'd like to be Pope': (guess who) reveals desire to lead Catholic Church ahead of Vatican papal conclave..." for instance is this political or spiritual?

Btw, "Custer died for your sins" or the sins of many of our ancestors but not by a long shot times millions!!

so is the Buddha refuting all its in house and profound sounding nay sayers?

I'd say it's not really possible to get into current events without getting into politics, just like it's not really possible to get into "spiritual" practices without getting into spiritual principles. It is said that that one of greatest forms of progress for goodness is when great evil is transmuted. (including the aspect of, "if it doesn't kill you it will make you stronger") But the situations in many parts of this world are so way off balance that evil is having a perfect storm of pushing its ways. A perfect storm that results in suffering and murder per hellish beings that are penetrating the Earth realm with lots of success and also influencing human beings. (some scoff at such an idea, although such has been going on for ages) Thankfully evil has no lasting root and will not prevail but will destroy all it can as it fails. (as much of history shows)

the main (personal) delusion is in thinking that one's mind/intellect/concepts, texts, etc. can somehow fully understand and circumscribe or be that which they are not, although at best point towards. (which includes thinking that one's mind fully understands and is an expert on no-self) good luck, don't believe me find out for yourself...

only being attached to the idea/concept/thought of no self or Self is problematic....those are pointers not the meaning itself. Why would the Buddha say, "May all beings be happy" if there are no beings, no selves to be happy? Was the Buddha indulging in some sort of delusion?

"Interesting. "Tao gives birth to one, one gives birth to two, two give birth to three, three give birth to ten thousand things." This statement, physically and biologically absolutely accurate for our 3D world,* contains within itself "laws" that can't be broken by 3D beings, whether domesticated or wild, whether benign or malicious. " My interpretation is that all manifestations, dimensions, forms, beings, both subtle as with light and gross as with dense matter are ultimately under the law of and within the overall One. (which will also "return" at the end of its life aka the cosmic cycle) pretty much agree on the 2d,3d,4d superseding steps. And lots of the other stuff is also above my pay grade ;-). if the Great Tao/Mystery could be broken then we would be SOL, or would never have gotten to where that could even occur.

from a wider perspective I'd say the law of the One, the law of the Two, and the law of Three are not broken, but the law of the ten- thousand has so many variables who can keep track? So one might ask has a great sage evolved to the law of the One (or even further to the Great Tao)....as for the rest of us it is said we go far. (my analogies)

several, so what are you getting at?

animals can not break the laws they are under, mankind can and thus willingly join with or fall to the demonic instead of fulfilling their dharmas and stewardship...btw American native elders were also called Keepers for the way and the "Red road" * and to guard against the dark road. *spoken of by Black Elk

So ST it seems like you have been following me around and have given multiple mockery 'contexted' icons or down votes against my posts, which I take as WTF after ignoring several such instances? (btw, Taomeow has probably not been following those other posts besides the one on her string, since I'm pretty sure she busy elsewhere) It's strange to me that some folks here are hyper critical about political negativity or facts yet here you are being negative to me for some pleasure it apparently gives you? Anyway silence is not always golden to me.

ST wtf is your problem, grow up! Taomeow, which is why I noted may need further looking into, since I'm not an expert. (btw, medical people and prayer saved my wife from stage 4 cancer so I don't dismiss all medical people or prayers out of hand, although I have studied up some on anti-depressants and the crimes related to that are legion including many deaths! from what I've come across)

we are not avoiding many repeats in varied forms! ....