Author Archives: Joel

The snow has started right on schedule, probably inaugurating the three days of unpleasant weather promised by the weatherman. Shame, too, because the past couple of days were very pleasant by January standards. And yesterday I really wanted to go … Continue reading →

Yesterday I casually said it wasn’t even cold enough to freeze the chicken water, and then I went out into the cold wet wind to meet a propane guy at a neighbor’s place. Two hours later I lurched back into … Continue reading →

Woke to high wind, which is probably when this wet white stuff dropped. The sky looks like it has cleared except for a high haze, won’t know for sure till the sun comes up. But it’s shirtsleeve weather in the … Continue reading →

…and you live a really long time, you might someday manage to look like this Datsun I saw while filling water bottles this morning. It was ironically parked next to a Fiat so new… …that at first I barely recognized … Continue reading →

It was a cold weekend, and back when we built the Meadow House we didn’t know as much about the importance of using solar gain to advantage – plus her house is bigger than the Lair. So she keeps a … Continue reading →

I couldn’t decide whether this was a ‘real’ deer or a pet. At the end I laughed till I choked. Around here it would have been a dog pack or a mountain lion or something, and the video would have … Continue reading →

Slowly and with much grunting and shuffling, moving sacks from here… …to here. Still not convinced pellet stoves were the best way to go, but what are you gonna do.

Landlady came up yesterday, intending to go back tomorrow after we finished the tiling on the shower at Ian’s Cave. And she brought a couple of unexpected care packages. These were both in response to specific recent complaints on my … Continue reading →

So yesterday needed to be baking day, giving me a great chance to inaugurate the new oven – or maybe to find out why it wasn’t going to work for me. I did test it in the morning – as … Continue reading →

I got my new kitchen stove today! Took much of the day to drive to the big town about 50 miles away and get it, but I got it. And except for the fact that they seem to have gone … Continue reading →

AWOMAN A Hebrew colloquialism roughly translated as “I am an idiot.” Commonly used in the Hebrew phrase “Amen and awoman,” meaning “Verily, I am an idiot.”

When I got my first real wood stove I was already mentally making plans for an emergency backup wood stove. This was because I had fallen prey to what was at the time a common misconception: Boxwood stoves always rust … Continue reading →

I figured I wouldn’t have the hardware I needed to mount that new weather station Big Brother sent me, so I didn’t plan the job till tomorrow afternoon after the Monday water run. But first I had to figure out … Continue reading →

…if the shitshow that is 2020 actually ended today and life started getting back to normal? But now we’ve got a whole new stack of would-be masters who wouldn’t profit from that. So I’m expecting to wake up in the … Continue reading →

Neighbor D kindly made a special trip to the crappy little town nearest where we live for the sole purpose of letting me fill propane bottles. And so now… Both stations and all spares are full. For the moment: We’re … Continue reading →

You’re in business! Seems kind of pricey, but I don’t recall ever pricing 28 gauge so what do I know.

This morning’s sunrise deserved a better lens, and a better photographer.

I knew from the moment I was vertical this morning it was going to be a beautiful day. Near the end of December and/or the beginning of January is traditionally when we’ll get some truly cold weather dumped on us, … Continue reading →