Month: February 2026

Cool again, and clear for the next few days if the weather liars can be trusted. It was partly cloudy/ mostly clear yesterday and very nice. Low 70sF was the best it could do. I’d like a bit more than that today, please.

Lost the whole day yesterday. Morning was more blood sugar monitor weirdness. Then D2 had an appointment in the afternoon that I was pretty sure I’d have to take her to. Because D1 wasn’t home yet. So I had to stay close to home and I did in fact have to take her.

W picked her up. I made dinner, pork loin roast frozen in 2023, and it was delicious. The sides were overdone because no one got home on time, but still tasty. I did apple slices pan fried in bacon fat with bacon bits and brown sugar. It’s a great way to use some apples with bruises or that are getting softer. 1/2 inch thick seems to be just right. Core before slicing. The rings look very nice on a plate. I deglazed the pan with Jack Daniels, so they were ‘bacon bourbon pan fried apple slices’ and they went very well with the pork. Baked potatoes with butter and chopped chives from the garden finished the plate.

Yum.

I did cut my hair, so that was one chore done.

Today, we’ll try again to make some progress. It could happen.

Stack.

nick

And it should be mild and clear for the extra day off. Well, mild-ish, and clear-ish. Yesterday wasn’t bad, mid 70sF by afternoon, but chilly by nightfall. 58F when I went to bed. The dampness made it feel colder. Today should be nice though.

I spent most of yesterday morning in bed. Weirdness with my blood sugar, or just weirdness with the monitor had me up early, and sleeping late. Then I spent most of the afternoon doing auction stuff while messing around on the internet. The day ended with a nice walk with the wife and dog.

Today the kids are out of school. D1 continues her girls weekend, D2 has plans in the late afternoon. W1 will be getting up and going to work. Me, not so much.

Plan is to cut my hair and do some of the many things I’ve been putting off and avoiding for the last week. I’m not super good at following up on my plans, so we’ll see what happens.

In any case, y’all should be preppin’ and stackin’. Even if I’m slackin’.

nick

Well, we’re supposed to be getting rain today according to the national forecast. I’m betting on warm and moist. Very moist. But maybe no rain. It was partly nice yesterday, and partly overcast and damp. Still better than three feet of snow.

I spent the whole day moving, except right after lunch when I crashed out for an hour. Met my people to sell them the toilets. Did some cleaning, sorting, and organizing at the shop. Loaded the truck with trash and debris and got rid of that. Did an auction pickup and stopped in to see my local auctioneer – still no date for selling my stuff.

Did some other stuff too and made dinner. Go me.

Today I’ve got my non-prepping hobby meeting, and it’s our quarterly mini swapmeet too. And we have to talk about finding a new space for our meetings. Of course I think the nearby place I found is the best choice. I suspect it will be a long meeting.

After that, I’ve got a wife to treat to Valentine’s stuff. I’ve got a card, and I’ll cook, but that is really about it. I forgot to get chocolate, and she’s started going to the gym so maybe chocolate wouldn’t have been great anyway. At least that’s my story for now. If I disappear, you’ll know it didn’t go well.

One kid is off with friends for a birthday “girls weekend” (the girl’s mom will be present) and the other has a couple of school activities to do. I’ll be lucky if I get anything on the list done this weekend.

Sometimes it be that way.

Stacking is the least I can do.

nick

Cool again, and maybe not clear. National forecast says rain today but clear tomorrow. Yesterday ended up gorgeous blue sky and mild temperatures in the afternoon. And end in the mid 50sF. So we’ll see, but I’m guessing damp and cool.

I spent the morning yesterday messing around and experimenting with my sugar intake, thinking it might be my last day to play with my glucose monitor (think sugar crash). I spent the afternoon at the doctor and doing one pickup and a run through the grocery store before getting home.

HEB had prime sirloin steaks on sale for $5.99/pound. I bought all that they had that were big enough cuts. There were also a lot more yellow tags (in store discounts, yellow tags on the shelf) than there have been lately. Even my favorite bacon had a price reduction from 32c/oz to 30c/oz. There was a buy one get one promo on nice Lavazza espresso cans too. My bill was ~$350 with a coupon and markdown saving of $120. I used to be happy to save 15% of the total. It was a good shopping day.

BTW, that broke the streak. I think it was 10 or 12 weeks without buying meat, other than one pork butt. Freezer meat for the win. I just wish there were some other cuts on sale besides the sirloin, but it’s a tasty cut.

Today I’ve got a couple of pickups to do, and I want to look at another church event space for my non-prepping hobby. The president picked one near his house, but it’s a 25 minute drive for me, vs our old location (7-10) and the new potential locations (<5 minutes.) I'm selfish enough to want my trip to stay short, but I'll present to the group and the board and hopefully the group will decide to stay in my neighborhood. Yeah selfish. Don't care. I also feel like if I could get two locations with minimal effort, wtf is up with no one but the president finding even one for consideration? Volunteer orgs run on the 10% who do everything. So, my prep is stocking the freezer, and building community. Stack something of your own. n

Cool, then warm. Maybe even hot! And the forecast calls for clear, which is very nice. I was sweating in the sun yesterday, but that was only in the sun. In mixed light or shade it was the perfect temperature. SOOOoooo nice. I just want to sit on the porch…

But the list is like rust and never sleeps.

Yesterday I mostly worked on getting the natgas gennie connected to the house. Well, really, putting the connectors in place and doing the wiring for real to connect it. Of course it wasn’t anywhere near as simple and straightforward as it should have been. But that’s my life.

I did manage to get my laundry done and folded. Dinner was made and eaten. And the whole family was at the table. That is increasingly rare with the kids’ school activities. A few more years and we’ll be empty-nesters. Time flies.

Today I’ll finish up the gennie so I can get that off my list. I’ve got at least one pickup to do too, and maybe some grocery shopping if the time works out. If not, tomorrow will be ok too.

I should stop in and see my buddy at the gub store too. It’s been a while since I dropped in. I’m always happy to see him and his wife and chat for a bit. And maybe he has some fantastic plastic in 22LR to use as a trainer…

The list is long, and my focus is short, but maybe I’ll get a couple of things done, while I … … … keep stacking.

nick