Author Archives: Joel

Much of the snow we got 36 hours ago melted yesterday afternoon, but ain’t no snow melting today. Haven’t seen the sun at all, and we’ve gotten some new inches in the past few hours. Not quite knee-high drifts (and … Continue reading →

Got three kills overnight: Two birds and a field mouse that wasn’t quite quick enough. Zero packrats. Found that bird on the left under the Jeep’s hood, but I’m pretty sure it’s not my culprit. Just the unluckiest Mexican Jay … Continue reading →

Far more than usual, though nothing compared to what some of you are probably dealing with. Four, maybe six inches though it seems deeper in spots. Not much wind, which is nice because the temp hit single digits just before … Continue reading →

That’s Cruise Control the miniature horse, crappy picture courtesy of my phone. I get a kick out of him in his shaggy winter coat, he looks more like a yak than a horse. In all these years I’ve still never … Continue reading →

…has certainly turned into a fine mess. I’ve started to write about it any number of times but always gave up. There are so many things to say I can’t ever quite get a handle on it. But that big … Continue reading →

…and I had such high hopes. For obvious reasons I’m reluctant to use poison – I even passed on my original plan to mount one of my traps on top of the most likely tire, because Ghost likes peanut butter … Continue reading →

It’s Shit-Shoveling Monday. Three days worth of manure to clean up, plus I finally have the Jeep and the trailer together in the same place and the manure pile is totally out of control, so I expect to be shoveling … Continue reading →

We’re in the middle of our traditional late-December cold snap here but for once I’m not going to complain. First, really industrial-grade cold involves clear skies and after the extended gloom that graced most of the month I’ll take clear … Continue reading →

Had some snow in the evening and overnight, nothing folks up north would consider worth mentioning. Temps in the teens. Though – just so you don’t think I’ve given up bitching about winter – it is mornings like this that … Continue reading →

…as if millions of gunbloggers suddenly cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced. I fear something terrible has happened. That awful gun control PSA has been pulled from Youtube. Jeez, what are we supposed to gas about now?

I did not know this. [The NORAD sleigh-tracking thing] started in 1955, with a misprint in a Colorado Springs newspaper and a call to Col. Harry Shoup’s secret hotline at the Continental Air Defense Command, now known as NORAD. “This … Continue reading →

The Perceived Carry Decoy.It’s not a gun. It’s not a toy gun. It’s the rear end of a toy gun stuck to what looks like a holster. All the tactical disadvantages of open carry with none of the protection. Maybe … Continue reading →

Ian is spending the week at his property, and – being Ian – brought fun things for his collection. I was hauling scrap lumber for a neighbor and made a quick side trip to the cabin to drop off Little … Continue reading →

I am, I’m happy to say. Up thirty degrees inside since getting vertical. As opposed to seven degrees outside since the sun came up. Still have to go out shit-shoveling, plus I’ve got a trash-hauling errand, but I’m hoping to … Continue reading →

The lair has an old Gaffers & Sattler apartment stove, piped for propane and absolutely perfect for this application. I bring in propane in little portable bottles since the delivery guy couldn’t possibly get in or out of the hollow … Continue reading →

“You sleep with your mouth open, you know.” “And I know where. As you will soon know.”

A comment a few posts down got me thinking about this, which I had never previously considered. It will either seem to you like an idea whose time has come or the most nauseating thing you’ve ever heard of. Possibly … Continue reading →

Avalon: He’s doing it again! Three times a week like clockwork, and all he ever does is say hello and take all my manure. He could at least ask. And have you ever seen such an obsession? I agree my … Continue reading →

So yesterday I received a care package from Generous Reader N, which contained many things including a roll of 3M outdoor tread tape… …presumably because I’ve bitched about how the wooden (and rather steep) stairs in front of the Lair … Continue reading →