Author Archives: Joel

Taken from my porch. Gad, I love it here. The colors don’t really come through, alas, because I don’t really know what I’m doing. That happens a lot, with many endeavors.

Yeah, I’m just messing around with my new toy this afternoon. There’s work to do, and I ain’t doing it. As usual. Ghost Fritz Magnus

The weather has been perfect, if a little cold in the morning. Yesterday I finished the Ginormous 2X12 Stack, just in time for the landlady’s monthly visit. We mostly sat around and shot the shit all afternoon, then went over … Continue reading →

Continued from here. Begins here. It’s All About Power. It might be the power of mass destruction; the power to send gigantic naval battle groups around the world to rain death on nations. Or it might be petty power: the … Continue reading →

Continued from Here. Begins Here. Perhaps a better question is, Que Bono? Who benefits? Freedomistas, myself included, are often guilty of the fault of thinking of government as this great monolithic leviathan, intent on kicking sand in our faces and … Continue reading →

Temperature this morning on rising was what you expect when there’s not a cloud in the sky; colder than a witch’s cliche’. But it rose, as it always does as long as the wind is mild, and today was another … Continue reading →

Continued from here. This won’t be a blinding flash of insight to a Freedomista, but the rest of humanity doesn’t seem to get it: Governments Don’t Create Anything. They don’t create wealth. They don’t create jobs. They don’t create safety, … Continue reading →

Well…Not so fast. Maybe something can. What if millions of people said, “Screw you guys, I’m going home”? Okay, “millions” is grandiose. Too much to hope for. What if hundreds of thousands did? What if a whole bunch of people … Continue reading →

Sun, sun, sun. Not a cloud in the sky. Temperature down to a little over 10 degrees and ice on all the windows, but that’s okay; it’ll warm up fast now. I’m gonna get back on those 2X12s and see … Continue reading →

…winter showed up again. Woke up this morning to snow and heavy clouds as well as the wind that’s been howling for the past two days. Bummer. Usually I don’t have any problem staying here alone, with the dogs for … Continue reading →

I don’t care who you are or what your politics are, this is funny right here!

We took our walk early today; I wanted to get it out of the way and get to chores. But it was such a beautiful morning that, when we reached the point on the nearby ridge where we normally turn … Continue reading →

Virtually everywhere I’ve lived (except Southern California, where there’s an entirely different joke) people told the same tired joke: If you don’t like the weather in (fill in the state), just wait a minute. Usually it isn’t all that true. … Continue reading →

“In the Heller decision, the majority of the justices ruled that you have an individual right to have your individual right infringed. The minority decided you have a collective right to have your right infringed. Outstanding jurisprudence. Just outstanding. 4 … Continue reading →

From the estimable Karen De Coster: After several emails from people regarding this post, I watched the Hollywood “I Pledge” video again, and it was even more chilling the 2nd time around. Some spots were especially eerie. – One guy … Continue reading →

I’ve got to stop eating lunch in front of the ‘pooter. Not only does it expose me to the tripe to which I’m about to expose you, but it tests my spit-take reflexes to the absolute limit. I suppose it … Continue reading →

Shortly after I wrote that I’d had no news about the incoming new generator, I got the news. Seems it only shipped on Wednesday, and won’t be in until the middle of next week earliest. That’s good, anyway – I … Continue reading →

Woke this morning to raindrops on the roof. Fritz and Ghost agitated to get out about quarter to four, but then came back in and let me sleep for another couple of hours. When I finally stirred about the sun … Continue reading →

Lunching. But you know, I’ve had days like this. Seriously, this is why I don’t work in the city any more. This right here. Seriously. The Great Office War from Runawaybox on Vimeo.

Winters here are very mild compared to where I grew up, and quite variable. A month ago I was huddled in the lair worried about whether my fuel supply would outlast the cold snap. Now it’s late January and looking … Continue reading →