Author Archives: Joel

My battery voltage level is scandalously low, and while yesterday’s forecast promised some afternoon sun for today so far I have seen no sign of it. So I’m unplugging, right now. Fortunately I just came back from Ian’s excellent library … Continue reading →

Pretty darn good, too!

Woke in the wee hours to the sound of rain on the roof. Woke again in the pre-dawn gray to…rain on the roof. Came downstairs at an unheard-of-late 7 am, permitted by the dogs because it was so gloomy I … Continue reading →

Neighbor D is home! Heard last night he should be coming home today around noon, so I went by to say hey. He looks pretty good for a guy who’s been in bed for five weeks. He told me he … Continue reading →

A newswriter of the gungrabber persuasion* visits a big gun show for the purpose of viewing it with alarm – and in the end there are no nazis! Where the hell is Pathetic Nazi Guy? Is he okay? Did he … Continue reading →

…It worked for him. 🙂

Okay, that is the outlet collar on Landlady’s new potbellied stove. Every source I can find says you fit a round 6″ single-wall stovepipe on it by simply squashing the pipe to fit. I have tried it with two different … Continue reading →

I don’t do forums anymore, because I already have lots of ways to waste time. But back when I did – which roughly coincides with the time when I was a bored cubicle rat with Internet access – for a … Continue reading →

In the flashlight post I said I couldn’t think of any ‘preppy’ item I had turned into a hobby*. The statement was literally true – I couldn’t think of one at that moment. Didn’t mean there wasn’t such an object. … Continue reading →

The gun lobby can be defeated Because of course the ‘gun lobby’ is the source of all ‘gun violence’ – especially that in Chicago. As he will now proceed to show us, I presume.

Have to get moving early today, while dressing I made a bit of an addition to the usual… …and did a bit of brooding over my lifelong ability to, with one foot already deep in my mouth, perform all the … Continue reading →

I almost drove into a cow the other day. I was totally in the wrong. If a cop had been within 20 miles, I’d have gotten a well-deserved ticket. Yup, I was texting while driving. At about 20 MPH on … Continue reading →

For the record, I’m not a member. I’ve been aware for a long time of a prepper subculture wrapped entirely around flashlights. Even for those of us who don’t wish to live and breathe flashlights there are trends and fads: … Continue reading →

…when it makes sense. The rational direction of movement in technology, in my curmudgeonly opinion, is toward less obtrusiveness. Example: Some three years ago, I sort-of inherited this old hard drive of Landlady’s. It can hold 500 gigabytes of files. … Continue reading →

‘Tis the season, folks. Despite my best intention to have the woodshed full to the rim before lighting my first fire, this morning I lit my first fire. Just briefly and really just because Landlady was coming over for coffee, … Continue reading →

This is a long-delayed step toward moving a new neighbor in. It’s not as though I’m anxious to fill the place up with people – if a developer started clearing land for a subdivision I’d be outraged to the point … Continue reading →

Not really. If I ever detected that my heart was actually bleeding, I’d seek medical assistance immediately because otherwise Zelda would get on my case. I write this title to mock this lady right here. Today, I write this letter … Continue reading →

I hadn’t really thought about this. Okay: I don’t really think about self-driving cars much at all, since they seem the least of my possible problems. But still: The car has to be programmed as to what action it should … Continue reading →

Progress in California! Wood fireplaces and stoves banned in new buildings Because, “It’s nasty,” said Sonoma County Supervisor Shirlee Zane, a member of the air district board of directors, which unanimously approved the rule amendments Wednesday. And so is oil, … Continue reading →

The boys and I were out the door at 6:30 this morning, which for the record at this time of year is before breakfast and at best halfway through coffee time. Ghost, who likes his routine unless he decides to … Continue reading →