Monthly Archives: October 2017

I wrote a post about a slasher on a NYC subway, who repeatedly stabbed a guy while two of NYPD’s finest watched from the motorman’s compartment where they had locked themselves. When the guy getting stabbed finally successfully defended himself, … Continue reading →

My burn barrels blaze brightly with the debris of the epic but hardly record-breaking rat’s nest formed where I’d foolishly left a whole bunch of lumber for – well – years. Finally got down to the real culprit… This pallet … Continue reading →

…some packrats must fall. And I try to stay relaxed about that but there is one rule. You break it at your literal peril… Don’t Steal My Stuff. Okay, some backstory. Ever since the Great Siding Adventure of 2015 there’s … Continue reading →

I don’t happen to hate white people in general, for the record. I can think of a couple of white people whose obituaries I would take some satisfaction in reading, but not because they’re white or any other particular color. … Continue reading →

I am absolutely not making this up. WASHINGTON (WMAL) — Plans to erect a statue of former DC Mayor Marion Barry outside the Wilson Building are moving forward. This week, the City Council was briefed by Arthur Espinoza, the executive … Continue reading →

It’s a good thing I had a pocketful of money when I woke this morning, because I sure don’t now. But I do have full bottles of liquid refreshment. One of these propane bottles has been waiting empty since early … Continue reading →

With the assistance – and, er, frequent encouragement – of a friend of the blog, TUAK now has a Patreon account! TUAK readers have been very generous to old Uncle Joel over the years, and I tell myself this isn’t … Continue reading →

So this morning I got this much wood cut into stove lengths. Added to what I did day before yesterday, total for the week is probably in the neighborhood of 3/4 trailerload. Not to goal, but screw it. The nice … Continue reading →

…from last year or the year before. “Don’t buy firestarters, cut your own from those firelogs people who use their fireplaces twice a year buy.” It seemed like a pretty good idea, and last winter I actually purchased a firelog … Continue reading →

Turns out the Guardian was only screwing with my head. Death of Queensland’s largest crocodile in 30 years could spark violent power grab And right away I’m thinking, okay, in what way does a dead crocodile send bureaucrats and/or politicians … Continue reading →

I received an email from a commenter yesterday, which I reproduce in its entirety… Joel: Is it my imagination or is the site becoming one long “let’s all tell Joel what/when/how/why/where to do stuff”? I mean, the occasional tip or … Continue reading →

Spent all yesterday afternoon nursing a stomach ache and sitting on the throne, and didn’t accomplish one blessed thing. Woke this morning feeling both better and rather rushed – I have a lot of little things to do before settling … Continue reading →

Two hours with that cordless reciprocating saw, and this is all I accomplished… And I don’t think that saw is going to be with me a long time. It’s not behaving well. I have three of these cordless B&D tools … Continue reading →

Today was the day! I finally got to play with my toys outside. No more construction, no more painting and caulking and fussing with furniture, now I get to do something much more in line with my intellectual gifts and … Continue reading →

It’s that time of year. Also what with all the construction/deconstruction during the warm season I had a hell of a lot of old wooden junk lying around the yard, so this morning’s task was to pick it all up … Continue reading →

h/t

News flash: Dogs manipulate us with body language! Because apparently scientists didn’t know this. They increased the frequency of certain expressions as a way of communicating. This included puppy dog eyes, unromantically described as movement AU101, which was used more … Continue reading →

…that we have more room now – in actual floorspace, almost twice as much – and yet Little Bear is now contriving to be underfoot at all times? As you can imagine, living in such a small cabin with such … Continue reading →

So I started the afternoon just planning to get that Honda generator up and running. Works fine. Then I thought, well, I do have this one little application requiring a power saw… In fairness, the Secret Lair can run a … Continue reading →

I do confess this was a care package dump I anticipated to an unusual degree. It’s not every time somebody sends me something likely to revolutionize a lengthy and sometimes painful annual chore. Big Brother sent me some cordless tools … Continue reading →