Random Gulchy Moments

My poor old holster…

I got it in late 2015 and have worn it nearly every day since, and it shows.

That’s what it used to look like on the front. But it’s not just aesthetics that bug me: It was never very good about staying put on my belt when it was new, and now the loop is so stretched out that it slides around in a most irritating manner. Also the thumb break has gotten floppy enough that I can’t reholster one-handed. Definitely time to replace the poor old thing but I resist spending the money because I’m hoping to replace the .44 with something smaller and lighter in the near future. And of course since I put a red dot on the .44 last summer I can’t just get a holster off a shelf unless I’m prepared to take a razor knife to brand-new leather. I don’t even want to know what a custom holster would cost.

I woke up this morning and my first chore while the coffee was brewing was to refill all the various water-bearing vessels scattered around the Lair…

Exactly ten years ago I had a very bad day: I had unconsciously let myself get so dehydrated that I was near physical collapse, and it all came to a very painful head when a kidney stone cut loose and I ended up in the local clinic. The whole matter resulted from my drinking the local well water, which is practically thick with dissolved solids and this time of year is unpleasantly hot to the point where I really wasn’t drinking water anymore.

Anyway, since then I’ve trucked in my drinking water weekly in these 3-gallon bottles, and in summer I carefully measure how much I drink. The water goes from the big bottle to this pitcher…

…and from there it goes all over the place. The teapot…

My trail canteen…

A bedside bottle…

And of course Tobie drinks the same water I do.

I didn’t make the switch with Little Bear, who drank well water all his life and may have had a shorter life as a result. I try not to repeat serious mistakes.

Just to encourage myself to pour it down, a couple of years ago I started treating myself to the makings of lemonade.

I love lemonade, never get sick of it, so that helps me keep hydrated without it actually becoming a tedious chore, which it actually can. There’s yet another water bottle I keep in the cooler, so in the afternoon I can have cold lemonade. 🙂

Speaking of Tobie and Little Bear…

Tobie has recently adopted this posture when he’s completely relaxed and chill…

Not very much about Tobie reminds me of Little Bear, they’re very different guys. But Little Bear used to do exactly the same thing in zen moments.

Wow – looking at those two pictures together also reminds me how much better my camera gear has gotten. 🙂

This morning after the long walkie I went over to Ian’s with a bunch of tools to do a chore I’ve been thinking about every laundry day for going on a year…

I made the clothesline poles from repurposed fenceposts, which really could have been longer. With prop rods it’s theoretically okay, but the wind keeps knocking the props down which lets bath towels and pants drag in the dirt as soon as I’ve walked away from hanging them up. Annoying.

Anyway, I put the crossbars on the poles right where there were already handy 1/2″ holes and it never escaped my notice that they could be set higher on the poles. It just meant I had to go out and drill big holes through the metal poles and that’s a pain in the ass. This morning before it got too hot…

…I finally got around to doing that, and now the wind should be less of a problem.

And now I’ll probably cocoon through another hot day with a good book.