Author Archives: Joel

Sorry about the wounded cop. But he’ll be drinking free beer on that story for the rest of his life, so… I got a kick out of this bit… In a series of tweets and links, a jihadist named as … Continue reading →

She was in the Lair, looking up at the perpetually-unfinished cabinet over the sink, at the working supply of bulk food I keep up there…Barley, corn flour, beans, beans, rice, oatmeal… …Potatoes, onions, sugar, dry milk… Trader Joe’s House Blend … Continue reading →

“[N]obody wants to look alone while they mindlessly snap pictures of themselves — the product conveniently provides you a welcoming arm. and better yet, it doesn’t talk or have emotions of any sort. you can even create fake accounts and … Continue reading →

This morning I’m just sort of hanging around, waiting for the afternoon when I’m going to town with D&L. Earlier I saw a chipmunk scampering around the juniper just outside the Lair’s door and I thought, “That’s unusually stupid even … Continue reading →

Early last month I was delighted to see my little pear tree flowering like crazy. Now it’s in leaf, but the leaves don’t look so good… More than half are all curled up and black around the edges. I see … Continue reading →

So earlier this week a big and very obnoxious packrat set up housekeeping in the powershed. Her first action was to pack a bunch of fiberglass insulation (wonder where that came from? [/sarc]) under a shelf and chew up my … Continue reading →

I’m not really convinced the ladies are suffering from a red-meat deficiency, or even that a heavy diet of mice would be a good thing. But a mouse or two can’t hurt, since I know for a fact it won’t … Continue reading →

This doesn’t necessarily hold up, when I look at it as a possible guide for our chickens. A carton of Eggland’s Best advertises that the company uses “vegetarian fed hens.” Horizon promises that their eggs “come from hens that are … Continue reading →

…but that was a long time ago… Two looted from Sipsey Street.

“The police have rights like anyone else.” – Vince Canales, President of Maryland’s Fraternal Order of Police If that were so, few would object. You wouldn’t hear a peep out of me. The problem is that instead of ‘rights like … Continue reading →

Ranger uses stun gun on man operating drone over lava lake Sanders, 35, of Pahoa, Hawaii, was arrested and cited with interfering with agency functions and operating an aircraft on undesignated land. He was taken to a Hawaii County police … Continue reading →

Photographs don’t lie, do they? Well, maybe sometimes they do. The gist of the story is funnier than my take: Whole Foods made sandwiches for the Guardsmen shipped in by the governor, and caught hell for it on Twitter. I’ve … Continue reading →

…Which is getting a veranda. Those concrete pylons will be covered with planters, and if all goes to plan (hah!) the whole thing will be covered with grape vines for shade. There’s a smallish roof going on over the door … Continue reading →

Everything you need to know. 1 picture > 1000 words.

For the sake of those who don’t care, I put the whole sordid mess below the fold.

Technically the actual birthday happened over a week ago, but it’s never been an event I care to make a big deal over. Still if neighbors want to bake a cake, you smile and go along with the joke. The … Continue reading →

The Secret Lair Siding Bleg got a couple of sizable last-minute hits via snail mail, which are very timely. Thanks to them I’ll be able to do work for which I didn’t think there’d be sufficient resources. (Compared to what … Continue reading →

So yeah. Yesterday I went to the big town about fifty miles away and I came back with enough building materials to rebuild the Lair’s south side and construct the parapet and exterior ladder. Included in this were three Hardie … Continue reading →

There’s always the temptation – because you’re dealing with human beings – that they’re going to cover this up in a way that makes them look faultless.” Press Release of the Near Future: “A full and fair investigation has revealed … Continue reading →

It’s been far past time for my annual eye exam, a fact of which I was reminded a couple of weeks ago with some moderately scary symptoms in my right eye – the bad one. So today I accompanied D&L … Continue reading →