Reflections on Twenty Four Years with a Natural Lawn

For the last twenty four years I've maintained a "natural" lawn. It's a practice that some would encourage, even many of the highly skilled Master Gardener Volunteers I had the privilege of working with over the years. There are various justifications for such an approach, from laziness to valuing plant diversity to concerns about intensive turf management practices. 

Disaster Preparedness for Data

Are you prepared for a data disaster? I thought I was, but I discovered some gaps in my preparations. Consider the impact on your life if a phone, desktop computer or laptop...

• suffered a catastrophic malfunction
• got lost or stolen
• got destroyed in a flood, fire or other disaster
• got confiscated
• got infected with ransomware

Would you still have access to all of your photos and contacts, for example? 

On Finding Deep Satisfaction from "Good Enough"

Many of the objects that fill my life could generously be described as "good enough". This is true today, and has been for decades. 

It would be reasonable to assume I'm in a state of constant discontent and envy as I observe others driving cars built in this decade, sporting phones with advanced features, working and surfing on sleek new laptops.  

But on the contrary, I find my choices deeply satisfying. 

Timberwalkers Visits Discovery

I grew up near the dawn of the era of human space flight. As a child I read about Yuri Gagarin and Alan Shepard and John Glenn. I joined the model rocket club and we launched our creations from the field behind the school. I watched Star Trek reruns with my friend Harold and saw Star Wars and Star Trek in the theater with my dad when they were first released. I still have a set of prints with photos from the Apollo 15 mission that Dad ordered for me directly from NASA. 

Can I Build a Free Cooler from Scrap Styrofoam?

No, definitely not.

Not free anyway. I did build a cooler (my second, here's a post about the first one) using scrap Styrofoam as the insulating material but spent about $85 on additional materials. 

Below I'll describe the build process, list the materials and costs, and offer thoughts about building one more economically. You can also watch the video. Note that this post may read like a "how to", but to quote the esteemed Mr. Savage, it is more of a "here's what happened" and you would be exceptionally foolish to attempt such an endeavor. 

Why I Didn't Do Rooftop Solar, and What I Did Instead

I've long dreamed of getting solar panels to power our home. I think home based solar is an important part of solving our climate and energy problems, and I also like the idea of having quiet, instant backup power when there is an outage. 

Recently I dug deeper and got a detailed proposal from a solar power system installer.

As in all things, there are pros and cons.

A Foolish Attempt to Manage the Unmanageable

This is one of the beavers that lives rent-free on our property. 

A Modest Accomplishment

I recently received the following text message from our bank: "Checking withdrawal posted for $876.10". This was the final payment on our home and land loan, and we are for all intents and purposes debt-free. Now in our mid-fifties and after thirty years of marriage, we are the proud owners free and clear of our home and land, three old cars, an old travel trailer and three kayaks. We've also managed to build an emergency savings account and invest a bit for retirement. Here I'll reflect on how we accomplished that.

How to Build a Cooler out of Foam Board

[You can also watch the video tutorial posted on my YouTube channel and/or view this photo album. And if you are seriously considering a cooler build, you may be interested in this larger one or this cheaper one.]

I would love to have one of the modern high-performance coolers, such as the rotomolded style, but we don’t actually need one badly enough to justify spending the money. But I wondered if I could build something comparable out of foam board for a fraction of the cost. 

So I built a small prototype, process described below, and here’s what I learned. I could NOT build a comparable cooler at a fraction of the cost. Nonetheless, I had a ton of fun and while the example I built would not stand up to the “Yeti” style coolers, it is quite functional and looks pretty great, IMHO. 

The Story of Deer Number Nine (A Note To My Beloved)

[Near the bottom of this post is a picture of a harvested deer]

This deer hunting season, my ninth, was a season of hard won lessons. And in the end, the biggest lesson is to do things differently next year.

To be honest, there was much I did not enjoy about the season. There were warm days in October when gnats and mosquitos were a frequent nuisance. There were long hours sitting in makeshift stands that lack creature comforts, leaving me stiff and sore.  There was the usual disappointment of failed hunts. In many cases I saw zero deer through hours on the stand. Perhaps even worse were the various occasions when a deer spied me before I even had a chance to aim, and scurried off or stayed out of range. 

Kayak Gear Checklist

This is a list of gear that you might want to take with you on a short kayak or canoe trip in warm weather on flat/calm waters. I also created a short video going over these items. Be sure to check with the appropriate regulatory authorities to be certain you meet minimum equipment requirements in your area. And be sure to wear a PFD (personal flotation device) any time you go boating. Note that in "back country", "wilderness" or other more isolated areas, there may be a need for emergency supplies that could sustain you for a longer period.

A Comprehensive Overview of Prepping Using a Sensible Strategy

Although I own neither a survival knife nor an underground bunker, I am indeed a prepper.

But how, you ask, can someone be a prepper without an underground bunker?

The answer, my friends, is simple. After thorough application of my powers of prophecy, I remain wholly unconvinced that a bunker-worthy apocalyptic event is eminent.

Full disclosure: Although they haven't been officially tested recently, my powers of prophecy are likely rated in the "poor" to "fair" range.

You doubt my credentials? 

What more proof do you need?

Nonetheless, I've been studying and applying the prepping concept for years, and aside from the insufferable agony of running out of hazelnut flavored creamer, six weeks without restocking groceries would be easy peazy. Granted, I never served in the special forces, but I do have my canoeing merit badge and was only a couple ranks shy of Eagle Scout. Or was it three? Four max. Clearly my qualifications are formidable. So let's get on with it.

Get Home Bag Checklist

A "get home bag" is a set of supplies kept in the car or office that will help you get home in the event of a widespread disruption to normal transportation systems. Such a disruption might happen due to a severe weather event, natural disaster, man-made disaster, or other occurrences. While I'm not a survival expert, below is a list of some of the major categories of items that might be included, with examples of each. 

The Long Season

By the metric of hours sitting in the deer stand, this was almost certainly the longest hunting season I've experienced. I started off keeping a record, but the exercise of cataloging failed hunts was simply too discouraging.

There were additional reasons to be discouraged. I've seen precious few deer on the 30 or so times I've hunted. On only four of those hunts did I see any that were even marginally within range. On three of those four my poor job of concealment gave me away and the deer spooked. Twice the spooked deer was a small buck that I coveted.

Kayak Shack Materials List & Construction Notes

This is the materials list for the kayak storage shed/rack I built.

All lumber is pressure treated. I used the following:

• 2 sheets of 1/2 inch plywood
• 4 ten-foot 2x4s
• 9 eight-foot 2x4s
• 11 ten-foot 5/4x6 deck boards
• Screws or nails rated for outdoor use with treated wood

Chasing Ghosts: Another Hunt Story

A biologist might describe a deer as a hooved ruminant. She'd be wrong.

Deer are ghosts.

They materialize in the forest out of thin air, then disappear in an instant.

They crash loudly through the trees just a few feet away without ever coming into view.

They emerge from unexpected places, offering a fleeting glimpse, leaving you wondering if you really saw anything.

They will haunt you with their absence for days, and then suddenly a gang of them will sneak up behind you.

This year I started hunting on the 19th of October, and for two weeks I sat in the woods every chance I got. An hour hear and there, a few mornings, mostly afternoons. Oftentimes I'd get home from work with just enough daylight left to sit in my stand for 45 minutes or so, keenly alert for the footsteps of a deer. Keenly alert. There was a time or two I nodded off. Several times. But in between naps I was keenly alert.

Building a Small Backup Solar Electric System

When Hurricane Maria hit and caused such hardship in Puerto Rico and other areas, I was inspired to review our disaster preparations. Although we live in a part of the world that is much less susceptible to that type of widespread devastation, we have experienced weather events that caused multi-day power outages, and it's not hard to imagine a scenario that could have more impact. We have a small generator, but gasoline is expensive and perishable, generators are noisy, and I suspect gasoline supply chains are more fragile than we'd like to think.

The answer, obviously, was to install solar panels.

A Retirement Planning Adventure

Retirement planning is, to me, a confusing and daunting endeavor. However, recently I stumbled across an article about retirement financials from the Stanford Center on Longevity. The Center works on issues people face around mobility, financial security and mental ability as they age. There is some evidence that I fall into the category of "people who are aging." Thus, I think it's pretty cool that we have our own Center at Stanford.

In any case, here's a link to the specific article. It suggests a strategy for managing your income stream during retirement. I found it enlightening and it inspired me to embark on a...

[movie announcer voice]
Retirement Planning Adventure
[/movie announcer voice]

In other words, I made a spreadsheet.

The Buck

Almost exactly a year ago, I made a grand pronouncement here that I am not a trophy hunter. It's only fitting that today I report the harvest of my first trophy.

Grand pronouncements notwithstanding, I'm not hating the feeling.

This is my sixth hunting season, and before this year I had only harvested does, save for one small button buck (i.e. a buck whose antlers were mere buttons on top of his head).

Many deer hunters sit in tall tree stands, or even what could be described as miniature cabins, well out of the sight line of their quarry, and with high powered rifles that can take a deer from some distance. I, on the other hand, prefer to be no more than six or eight feet off the ground, fully exposed, and with a gun that could be described as "distance challenged". I do this because I seek a more pure experience, truer to the concept of fair chase, giving my prey more equal footing in the epic struggle between hunter and hunted.

Plywood Boat Build FAQ

In this post, I will attempt to answer some of the Frequently Asked Questions about my homemade plywood boat (view the video here or read about it here). For the purposes of this post, the term "frequently" is defined as any number greater than or equal to zero.

1. Why didn't you add a keel?

Initially I decided not to add a keel as I had no plans to do any keel hauling. Later, I discovered that a keel could be used for other purposes, like making the boat go through the water more efficiently, i.e. with less swaying back and forth as I paddle. I did add a skeg, which helped some, but upon reflection I do believe a keel would help more. I may add one in the future, or I may just build another boat and use a keel on that one.