Category Archives: Hobbies

Model Lighthouse Woodworking Plans

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Have you ever wanted to build your own lighthouse for a lawn display, sitting in the house, or maybe on the beach as a decoration, or how about a bird lighthouse? I received a notice about free lighthouse plans. Following the lead I came to a website that asked for US $67 for their free plans. Not really wanting to spend that much money, I started a Google Search. I found this model lighthouse below at U-Bild.com. Not a bad price either.

Lighthouse (Plan #860)

 But it does not end there. They have a Lighthouse Value Plans package that gives you three lighthouses to build – Lighthouse Plan #C159. This package includes the plan above Continue reading Model Lighthouse Woodworking Plans →

Are You Looking for Lighthouse-Related Items?

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When I was browsing a crafty website called Completely Coastal which I reviewed earlier I came across an advertisement for Etsy. Searching for things lighthouse, I typed that into the Etsy page search box. The page in the picture below came up.

It is page one (1) of two hundred eighteen (218) pages of lighthouse-related items, for a total of 8,696! Enjoy! Tell us what you bought!

Clicking on the photo below takes you to the lighthouse search items on Etsy.

Mission Boat “William H. Pierce”

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– as told to me by Mike Gallagher – deckhand and acting skipper “W. H. Pierce” and mate on the “Thomas Crosby IV”.

The following guestbook entry was received by Ron Ammundsen, webmaster of the BC Lighthouse web pages and forwarded to me. It was signed by Michael Gallagher.

Between 1952-56 in the summers, I was aboard the “William H. Pierce” with Dr. George Darby out of Bella Bella (now Waglisla). We went ashore at most lighthouses from Boat Bluff south to Egg Island , sometimes for medical reasons, sometimes to take magazines, have tea and talk . . . mainly listen.

WH Pierce at pointer island c. 1953 - photo Mike Gallagher

After Ron forwarded the entry to me I contacted Mike and asked if he had any stories for my Lighthouse Memories webpage. He said:

I probably have too many stories of my four summers with Dr. Darby, so I’ll mention a couple as they relate to lighthouses. Continue reading Mission Boat “William H. Pierce” →

The Lightkeepers by Graham Chandler

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Originally published in the January/February 2007 issue of Legion Magazine

We hadn’t expected gourmet Hungarian goulash served up on Royal Doulton china. But at the Cape Scott light station on the remote northwestern tip of Vancouver Island–a place that is normally engulfed in wet grey and storms–today is an exception. The sky is azure, there’s not a puff of wind, and Principal Keeper Harvey Humchitt and his partner Assistant Keeper Todd Maliszewski have house guests.

After sweating through 24 kilometres of squishy rain forest trails we’re no match for the fine linens and silver flatware spread impeccably before us on the dining table. The trek through the forest is the only way to get here without a boat or helicopter. After a couple of greeting barks from their dog Lady, Humchitt welcomes us to Cape Scott. Continue reading The Lightkeepers by Graham Chandler →

I Need Help Changing a Windows 7 Theme

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For all of you reading this and running Windows 7 on your computer, there is a way of changing the theme on your computer. The theme controls the desktop photo, sound, and other visual effects. Windows ships with many versions of its Aero theme.

You can see the different installed themes by right-clicking on an empty space anywhere on your Desktop and selecting Personalization (bottom left) and waiting for the Themes to load. Once loaded you can select a different Aero theme provided by Microsoft.

My problem is that I have just come across a very nice lighthouse theme (photo at left) that I would like to try out on my computer. I downloaded the theme (just over 2 MBs in size), but when double-clicked it will not load, and there are no instructions on the website.that I can see.

I tried copying the theme to C:\Windows\Resources\Themes but even though the theme  shows up in the Personalization window, it will not load. Now I am stumped.

Has anyone out there who is reading this tried to install a non-Microsoft theme? It would be really nice to have a lighthouse theme, and maybe it could even be modified to take a personal photo.

Please, if you know the solution, drop me a note or leave a comment. Thanks. I’ll post a solution here if and when I get a solution that works.

Moving Day 1970s

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Crates awaiting lowering to the ship - photo Glenn Borgens

One of the problems with moving to another lighthouse was that everything had to be crated and or well-packed to withstand the dangers of the transportation and handling by ship and/or helicopter. It also had to survive unexpected falls and/or water damage, both fresh and salt.

When my wife Karen and I first moved on the lighthouses we had no material for crating so we had to get professionals from a moving company to do the work for us. They did a very good job but were very expensive.

When we got the bill we did not have the money to pay for it, so we told the man we would leave half the furnishings there in the warehouse and get them shipped out next month when we got paid. He was having nothing of that and eventually dropped the price to something we could afford. Continue reading Moving Day 1970s →

I Love Night Shift!

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You hear so many people complaining about having to work nights at a job. Myself, I found night shift to be the best! The rest of the station was asleep. I had the radio all to myself, a good book, cup of coffee and I was set.

Every hour or so, depending on the feel of the weather I would take a trip outside and check the engine room, and admire the sky! I was always amazed by the number of stars you could see from a lighthouse, as long as one stayed out of the loom of the main light.

Once my eyes became adapted to the dark, it was like the whole sky was lit up just for me. I used to pick out the constellations – one of my favourites was Orion, the Hunter which loomed large and clear in the sky from SE to SW depending on what time of night it was.

I used to leave the curtains open in my bedroom at night. If I woke before it was time to get up for shift, I would look outside and if Orion was visible, I could tell what time it was by the position in the sky. Continue reading I Love Night Shift! →

Lighthouse Photos by Cyril R. Littlebury c. 1922-1932

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Photos of British Columbia lighthouses by Cyril R. Littlebury in the years 1922 to 1932 with thanks to Dudley R. Booth for permission to publish – please visit Dudley’s new website at Historic Photos. There are many more photos there besides lighthouses.

When Dudley Booth developed some old negatives his father gave him he found a treasure trove of scenes from 1920s and 1930s Vancouver. 

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  Continue reading Lighthouse Photos by Cyril R. Littlebury c. 1922-1932 →

Lighthouse Jigsaw Puzzles

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I am not a fan of jigsaw puzzles, and I do not think I would have thought of this one, but the website Squidoo has done all the work for me.

They have a new story called Lighthouse Puzzle. Shown below are photos of some of the lighthouse puzzles they have described in their three categories:

Realistic Lighthouse Puzzles

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  Continue reading Lighthouse Jigsaw Puzzles →

I Remember . . . c. early 1960s

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Langara Point

 

– from Jeannie (Hartt) Nielsen (daughter of Ed Hartt, Senior Keeper on Langara 1957 – 1963) 

 

 

Smells
Growing up on a total of five different west coast lighthouses I remember certain things that were common to them all. The best day was always supply day (see also the Groceries & Mail Categories). When we were on Langara lighthouse in the early years (1957 – 1963) we received supplies every three months. I can remember the first thing I listened for in the early morning of landing day was the clicking sound of the damper in the chimney of the kitchen’s oil stove. When I heard that I knew that there would be no supplies landed that day as the wind was too high.

One December I heard that dreaded sound twenty (20) days in a row, and each day the ship tried to bring our groceries. We would watch as it would come into view just off Langara Rocks. They would assess the landing conditions, then we would watch with growing dispair as it turned back to the safety of a nearby harbour. Finally on the 21st day, the supply tender (itself running out of provisions) was able to deliver our supplies.  Continue reading I Remember . . . c. early 1960s →