Author Archives: Joel

Got well into the nineties indoors and out yesterday, with nary a breath of wind. Got some yard work done early but spent the bulk of the day indoors reading E. E. Smith and drinking water. Once the sun approached … Continue reading →

Weather’s really weird this morning. Thunderstorms are coming through heralded by big gusty blasts of wind in random directions, and Tobie found it all very exciting to the point where he forgot he’s a big dog now and started rampaging … Continue reading →

I spent the majority of my time here in the Gulch living on the economic edge. Which means scrounging, which is all about access to tools. Up till about five years ago I went without refrigeration at all, which really … Continue reading →

Somebody had a big accident on Tobie’s bed. Don’t know what happened or why, not mentioning any names, maybe a posse of ground squirrels burst in and held him down while others peed all over the window side of the … Continue reading →

A couple of Generous Readers bought gel socks from the amputee stuff supplier, but that was a while ago and I’ve been awaiting their arrival with increasing anxiety. But today the first batch landed! I think this is from Anon, … Continue reading →

or, Revenge of That Bush in my Yard. So a couple of days ago I cut down two of the many intrusive bushes that have taken over my yard between the woodshed and the wash… …and I really should have … Continue reading →

I don’t know why but in the past couple of years what used to be mostly bare dirt has broken out in big dense bushes. Not just here, either – it’s happening all over. I wanted something like a string … Continue reading →

After a pretty good day I had a night that seemed to last about 48 hours. Some of that was the heat – the first heat wave of the summer has arrived to smite us sinners in its righteous wrath … Continue reading →

This made my morning. You’re familiar with Markley’s Law, right? It refers to the musty old joke that an interest in owning/carrying guns is driven by a desire to compensate for small male genitalia*. Guns are phallic symbols, people unhappy … Continue reading →

First Wednesday of the month is senior day. Yay. We went early this time and it wasn’t very crowded but this is my first visit in three months and I started out kind of hyperventilating anyway. But I got over … Continue reading →

I think this was composed by an AI whose first language is not English. You know you’ve addressed this to someone who can’t confidently define what an app is, right? No. You didn’t know that, Robbie Robot. I award you … Continue reading →

This is normally an autumn flower… …but they’re already showing up in May/June. A little confusing, especially since it hasn’t been wet.

I had a few days’ reprieve, where I was getting work done and feeling pretty good about life, but now I’m back to barely being able to breathe, see or sleep. Otherwise I’m fine, nothing is seriously wrong, but I … Continue reading →

It was a TUAK reader quite a few years ago who turned me on to gelsocks. The prosthesis I had before my current one, I got so long ago that there was no such thing then, and when it no … Continue reading →

And a first coat on about half the south wall of the main cabin, just to use up what was in the tray. The south wall got complicated a lot with the bedroom addition, what with door trim and downspout … Continue reading →

I’ll be damned. Quarter to five in the morning and I just took my first shot at a coyote in something like 11 years. In all the time I’ve been here I have only ever killed – or at least … Continue reading →

Into each new relationship, some rain must fall. I put a red dot on my S&W m69 two years ago and it worked without difficulty, but the Smith is a revolver without that pesky steel slide that automatics have, slamming … Continue reading →

In June of 2015 the longsuffering Lair finally got its siding. This was like six years after the structure was otherwise complete, by which time the underlayment was not in great shape. 2015 was deep into my “you too can … Continue reading →

…the past couple of years it has done me dirty. I mean, I know the weather and the flora haven’t changed, and I’ve always gone through Spring spells where I shouldn’t get too far from a handkerchief. So I’m assuming … Continue reading →

Sometimes the problem with living in the boonies is that the logistics of doing something is harder than actually doing something. Example… One thing I was absolutely determined to get done this season was at least one good coat of … Continue reading →