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Category: march to war

Thur. Feb. 8, 2024 – fast or slow, here we go!

Cool and overcast. National forecast is clear for a couple of days, while openweathermap says “light rain” but the daily hour by hour forecast says “0%” chance of rain. Liars gonna lie… We’ll see what actually happens. Only impact on me is if the stuff in the back of the truck gets wet or not…

Did my big loop of pickups yesterday, then did my kid stuff. Nothing of interest with either. Then stopped at HEB grocery for my prescriptions, and to see what was on sale. Bought some more meat. Tasty cow. If it’s on sale, I’m a buyer. I’ll break that down today, and maybe put some brisket in the slow cooker. Gotta find another solid slow cooker recipe.

Hit the chiropractor too. I’m sore. I let my misalignment go too long. Y’all might remember I’ve been trying to learn to manage my typical issues without outside help, for when there isn’t any available. Well, I let the experiment go on too long this time. I’m paying for that now. Use civilization for what you can while you can.

Today I’ve got one more pickup. There have been a ton of dewalt and Milwaukee tools in the auctions lately. I own both, so I’m always looking to get more if the price is right. And it was last week. Dunno why all the brand new tools in unopened boxes are in the secondary markets right now, but there are a LOT of them. Maybe the manufacturers need to generate cash so they’re dumping stuff? I can’t really think of a good reason for it. New unopened current production. Nuts.

Speaking of new, I was behind a flatbed truck loaded with the wheel carriages for freight trains- boggies? No wheels, but the huge casting with the springs inserted. New old stock, casting dates clearly visible from the mid and later 90s. That stuff has been sitting for a long time. It was strapped and stacked, so I think it was finally being delivered for use, and not sent to the scrapper. If they’re just getting to inventory that is 30 years old, I wonder if anyone is still making the parts currently? Houston features a locomotive on the City Seal, and we have a lot of track, switchyards, and other RR infrastructure in use. I see them switching out ties, reballasting, and updating grade crossings, so it’s still important to someone here.

But there is a lot of infrastructure that is going un-repaired, and un-replaced. I don’t see that as a good thing. Wait too long and you lose the facilities and craftsmen who make the stuff. You lose the stuff when it fails catastrophically instead of just having small issues routinely fixed. Look around your area. If you don’t see infrastructure projects, whether new or maintaining the existing, your area is probably in decline and it won’t be long before the failures start, or worsen to the point of no return. Get out while you can if you are facing that.

Whatever happens in the next 5-10 years, where you are is probably going to be the biggest factor in how well you do, or how poorly.

No matter where you are though, preps will help. Stack!

nick

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Wed. Feb. 7, 2024 – !adelantando!

Cool and clear. Warming later. Nice day in other words. Like yesterday despite the chilly start.

I started the day doing some auction stuff, then messing around on the internet with my friends. Decided to make the carnitas in the slow cooker, but forgot to start that process going. Worked on fixing some things, but after spending 2 hours on it, failed.

Then I checked my texts and saw that I’d missed a call from my auctioneer. They wanted me to bring some more stuff by! They’d used up all the bins I had there already, and needed more stuff. Well. I’m your man! The boss had previously waved me off for this week because they were full up, but I guess they got that taken care of. So I scrambled to get the bins I had ready at the house, and to swing by a couple of storage units and grab a couple of bins worth of items…

D1 didn’t want to ride with me, so she got her own ride home from practice, and I did my drop off. That was the only way the timing would work. Eh, it all worked out and I got a few more things into this week’s auction. And I learned that D1 CAN get herself home, if she’s motivated. Funny how that worked.

I did get the carnitas in the cooker before starting all that mess and it was ready for dinnertime, and it was delicious.

I’ve got 4 solid crockpot meals that I can do with minimal prep and no extra shopping. If I can get a couple more, I’ll be even happier. The crockpot saves a bunch of effort and produces tasty meals, and it will do it for less expensive cuts. If it’s been a while since you used one, take another look. There are plenty of sauces and prepared seasonings to help you succeed.

Today I’ll do a couple of pickups, and kid chauffeur duties. I’ll try to knock a few things off the list in between.

Keep stacking.

nick

(title means “advancing” or “moving forward” (literally “forward-ing”) or so I’m told. It’s also the title of a pretty good album.)

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Tues. Feb. 6, 2024 – well, if not hell, then heck?

Cool and clear. It never did rain on my house yesterday, but it did rain on my wife on her way to work so BOTH forecasts were correct! Hers and mine. Peace in the house, hooray. Today should be clear, and warming later in the day.

I didn’t get everything done, or even started, and what I did do took longer than I hoped. Sometimes it be that way. I got some stuff pulled out for ebay, some for my local auction. I sorted some stuff that has been sitting since October. My back was hurting so I’ll claim that as my excuse for not doing heavier work. Well, hurting more than normal…

Then I had to get the kids from school, and do some cooking. I was going to make some frozen fish, but I started breaking down some bulk meat and vac sealing it, so after doing beef brisket, pork shoulder, and a spiral sliced ham, I decided that I could just throw the ham in the skillet and make that. I was browning chunks of the pork shoulder to make carnitas in the slow cooker. Freeze some, cook some… so the ham was a natural choice. The vintage cast iron performed beautifully. I’ve got a good seasoning on it and with some bacon fat, even the sticky sugar from the ham scraped away with a smooth utensil. A quick rinse, then dry and re-oil with clean peanut oil, and back into the drawer for next time. Cooking with good cast iron is a joy.

The pre-browned chunks of pork will go into the slowcooker today. Some of the ham I packed in 1 pound bags, and I’ll take that to the BOL for when I’m up there alone. It’s a quick and tasty dinner. The rest is in 2 pound bags. The pork is in 3 pound bags, and the brisket is in 4 pounders. That is one bag per meal, with some leftovers. I mentioned before that I have increased the weight of my “per meal” packages. Freaking kids eat like crazy. Buying in bulk, cutting to meal size or portion size, and vac sealing before freezing is economical and convenient. Takes a bit of time, but not much more than putting the groceries away. The savings make it worth it.

Late in yesterday’s comments I linked to a couple videos of shootouts involving cops, and civilians. One is a guy who’s just had enough, the other is a young thug. There are lessons to be learned from watching other people experience violence, and violent situations. Note too the police response and tactics. In the second one, the neighbor threatening to kill people, note when the cop reminds the neighbors that he’s recording and asks if it’s alright. Remember that they didn’t do that while interviewing people on the Rust set, when Alec Baldwin shot and killed his Cinematographer. No Miranda warning, and the video is admissible. Something to keep in mind if you are in a bad situation, or even witness to one. Like I said, lessons to be learned.

Today I’ll be doing the same, over and over again. It’ll be fun! Well, it’s never boring.

Learn something new today. Practice a skill, or start on a new one. Stack experiences like you’re stacking food.

nick

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Mon. Feb. 5, 2024 – what fresh hell will this week bring?

Cool and clear, according to the national forecast, overcast and clouds according to openweathermap. Guess we’ll see who guessed better. It was cool and clear yesterday, but windy as all get out. Crazy windy. I suppose it helped dry things out, but it blew stuff all over my yard and driveway.

I did stuff close to home yesterday. Worked in the garage doing a little clean up. Very little compared to what needs to be done, but it was a start. Moved some stuff around in the house too. Spent some time on the computer doing auction stuff, and worked on some pipes. I’m finding it to be very relaxing to refurbish them as I watch videos or work on the computer.

Today will be more of the same, with some domestic bliss added in.

And it’s time for me to start thinking about the Hamfest, and what I’m bringing there for sale. I re-read my posts from last year and I haven’t done any of what I thought I should, mainly selling the higher value stuff on ebay. I guess I’ll give it one more try since it’s only a few weeks away. I’m definitely adding some of my test gear to the sale pile. I have stuff I haven’t even turned on in 3 years, and barely know how to use. That’s not in itself an issue for me, I’ve got lots of stuff I only use occasionally, and only to the extent I need to get something done. But there are things that someone else might better use, and that are so specialized that I might never learn to use them properly. Since it’s mostly radio test gear, the Hamfest it the place for it.

My non-prepping hobby will be having a mini swapmeet next weekend at our usual meeting too, so I should get some stuff together for that. Suddenly, I feel really busy…

That’s just par for the course I guess. Note to self, don’t falter…

Stack what you need, get rid of what you don’t.

nick

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Sun. Feb. 4, 2024 – 02042024 – Not surprising…

Sunny and cool, still damp. Should be clear. It stayed clear most of yesterday with only scattered clouds. I was in shorts and shirtsleeves, so nice temps too. Hoping for more of that, rather than heavy rain. Most of the bayous I crossed were at normal or only slightly elevated levels so they are doing a good job of managing the flow.

Shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone here that I didn’t get as much done as I’d have liked. I picked up another 200w panel, and a dented in “gub safe” that is really just a heavy sheet metal cabinet. I’ll knock out the dents and add a lock, and use it for ammo or accessories. Maybe use it for the air rifles.

I was going to make a scrap run. I might have mentioned picking up a stove and oven for only $12 total. If not, I got the stove for a ‘garage kitchen’ or summer kitchen at the BOL. It’s an ordinary GE gas stove and oven. I also got a Whirlpool 24″ wide gas oven for $2. It’s black glass and kinda dated, and was only $2, so when my wife wasn’t interested, I thought I’d just scrap it. Then I looked a bit more closely and it works for either natgas or LP gas… you only have to flip an internal part and close an air shield. I’m taking it to the BOL to sell up there, or maybe putting it on Craigslist here. Propane appliances sell for good money. Even if I only get $40 or 50 to move it quickly, the ROI is pretty good, and I’m helping someone out.

I missed out on some auction stuff I’d have liked. Ate dinner and fell asleep in the chair while waiting for the lots to close. There was a nice small woodstove, and a smaller fridge, and a mechanical clothes washer. The woodstove sold for $55, the washer for about the same, and the fridge for $35. There was another fridge in the sale that sold for $7. It was an ordinary top freezer Hotpoint, a little on the small side, but looked nice and clean. WAY nicer than my current beverage fridge at the BOL. I don’t NEED another fridge but I’d probably have bid on it if I was going up to the sale to pickup anyway…

My point is that there are still some great preps out there, and there are sales with low prices. I think this one closed low because of the late Saturday time, and it’s a bit far from Houston proper, which reduced the bidder pool. Oh well, I’d have been glad to win the items, but then I’d have had to pick them up and get them to the BOL. On the plus side, the sale was about a third of the way to the BOL.

Today I’ll keep working the list, and maybe deal with a pop up issue or two. There’s always more that needs doing.

And maybe I’ll stack something. I’ll want to, and mean to, but might not get to it. Doesn’t mean you shouldn’t!

nick

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Sat. Feb. 3, 2024 – rain rain go a-way, come again some other day. –Ok. I’m here now.

So we got a respite from the rain, and now it’s back. Cool morning with rain throughout the day, or so I’m led to believe. It was grey, with occasionally sunny spots, most of Friday. It got so dark at 330pm that I thought my watch was wrong… but the rain held off. Just a sprinkle before the kid’s school musical.

Did a big loop of pickups yesterday. Got stuff for the BOL, and stuff for my solar experiment, as well as a couple of tools and some supplies. There are future projects percolating in my brain that I’m already accumulating stuff for.

Ran into a couple of the other dads at the school play. One is our friend that got us into the BOL. He’s an auction buyer too (on my recommendation) and it turns out we actually bid against each other on the solar panels. It would be nice to avoid that, but it’s possible you could consider it to be illegal collusion… certainly the auctioneers wouldn’t like it. I’m going to try to keep in better touch to avoid it if possible.

Today’s activities will depend on the weather. I’ve got one local pickup to make, and can do it in the rain if needed. I’ve got a ton of other stuff to do around the house, garage, and for auction stuff, so there won’t be any shortage of projects. We’re all at home this weekend so maybe we’ll sneak in a family movie or game night too.

Gotta stack memories as well as goods.

But stack the goods, for sure, so you can make good memories later.

nick

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Fri. Feb. 2, 2024 – ah the smell of cardboard boxes…

Cool and overcast, possibly wet… some chance of rain today. Yesterday ended up kinda cloudy, not really overcast, but pretty grey later in the day. No rain though, and the temp was very nice. Today should be comfortable, but wet.

Did my pickups. It’s been a while since I bought anything from the city surplus warehouse, but I got something I’ve wanted for a long time. It’s a bit of infrastructure that could be used surreptitiously around town. I intend to use one at the BOL, and sell a bunch. I also had a good chat with my other auctioneer, the one who wants to start prepping. Gave him some links from the old MD Creekmore site, and from his current site. Had an issue with pointing him here, as that would out me to him and I’m not sure I want that, at least not yet. While I was there he sold me a Renogy flexible solar panel. I won two more in auctions last night, so I’m spending money like crazy (and saving it too) but I’m advancing my solar project. I’m buying it when I see it.

As you can imagine, I’ve got a mish mash of panels, charge controllers, inverters, and batteries. I think I’ll end up with a bunch of small systems rather than one big one, but I’m not ruling it out yet. I just think it has to be easier if they are all similar panels, which is not what I’ve got.

One auction had a match to my Honda I3000 inverter gennie. I really wanted it so I can slave it to the other, and get 240v from the pair. Unfortunately, someone else wanted it more than me. I dropped out at $1k. IIRC I paid $500 or $600 for the first one, and put a couple hundred more into it to get it running. After buying the panels, I didn’t think I wanted to go higher than $1k for an unknown quantity.

I’m doing what I can to get my own infrastructure together, at least at a minimal level. You guys should be thinking about it too. One of the signs of the decline is that formerly reliable services become unreliable. Any armed strife, or terror act could add to that.

I think we’ll see both, for whatever it’s worth.

Get your ducks in a row, they’re tasty!

Stack like your life depends on it.

nick

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Wed. Jan. 31, 2024 – livin’ on reds, vitamin C, and cocaine, all I know is ain’t it a shame…

Cold, then warmer. Clear, but maybe some clouds. Or maybe overcast. The liars can only guess, and dress the guess up with “science-y” pictures and charts, but at the end of the day, it is still a guess. I can guess too. With about the same consequences if I’m wrong.

Although it got all the way to “warm” yesterday, despite guesses that it wouldn’t. In fact, it was a beautiful warm day. I drove around with the windows down all day. Starting with taking D2 to the orthodontist, and then to school. Ran some other errands, then took 3 black bins to my auctioneer. Picked up a 200w solar panel, and some other stuff. Got D1 from school. Got an adjustment from my timeshare chiropractor. And went to the sporting goods store to buy food for the gubs…

I’d looked online to see what prices were, and if there was stock at the store. Their website assured me that there was, and that there were choices that were in line with national pricing here in the ‘new normal.’ Stock on the shelves did NOT match the online inventory. There was ammo in pretty much every caliber, but choices were very limited. Most had two choices. Really common, like 9mm – had several. 556? one choice each load, and only 3 loads (green tip, fmj, optimized for hunting.) Not a lot of stock on the shelf, but if you had the scratch, you could get a couple of thousand rounds of the most common calibers, and many thousand rounds of 22LR. No 7.62×39 at all though. Hunting calibers were limited to a few boxes and a couple manufacturers in every type. Still, I’d say that there was SOMETHING to buy for everyone except the commie guns.

I bought some fish hooks and attractant spray too, while I was there. I’ve got more fake bait than I know what to do with, but all the estate stuff was very short on actual hooks. I got a couple of seasons worth in a variety of sizes and styles, based only on what I’ve seen my neighbor at the BOL rig for me. FWIW, Academy Sports has a LOT of plastic bait with a big markdown, on clearance. If you’re short on worms or rage swimmers, you might want to check them out.

With all the driving around, I didn’t get as much done here as I needed to. I’ll be working on that today before I do my pickup. And I’ll be setting a live trap in the attic. I looked, but didn’t see any issues earlier this week, but I’ve heard the movement, and I’m sure something is up there. The rat poison is still there, so I’m thinking possum. We’ll see if the trap gets him.

I’ll sleep when I’m dead.

Keep the faith, and keep stacking.

nick

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Tues. Jan. 30, 2024 – Cookies will brighten your day…

Cool to cold-ish again, then warming with the sun… like yesterday. It was pretty chilly at the bus stop, watching my breath condense, but the driver was on time and I was back in the warm house lickety-split. And isn’t that a strange turn of phrase? It did warm up as the day went on, until I was in shorts and a t-shirt in the afternoon. I’m hoping today is the same- cool enough to work in the attic, and to strain, but not so cool I need extra layers.

Spent the day getting caught up on some auction stuff, knowing I had to get both kids from after school activities within 15 minutes of each other… Stayed close to home and didn’t get into any involved projects.

Dinner was my biggest project. I found the freezer door slightly open, and a pork roast pretty much thawed out… The rest of the freezer was still rock hard, so that was a plus. It meant cooking the roast pretty soon though, and yesterday was one day later. It was delicious. I made sauteed cabbage and onion, and honeyed baby carrots, with naan bread on the side. Which got me thinking about this year’s garden. Cabbage. Onions. Carrots. Collards. Turnips. Beets. Potatoes. Staples that last all winter. I hope they will grow in my soil. I personally only had luck with the beets and carrots and collards in the past. I’ll run it past my neighbor, and see what he thinks. Tomatoes and peas are nice, but will they feed your family in January? Put some thought into it.

And then stack some cans in case the deer, or the neighbors, or the weather, or the pests get your garden.

Today is more of the same. I’m really trying to organize and move stuff to get ready for cookie season. Selling it would be good too, but moving it has to happen.

I looked at prices and availability of ammo at my local sporting goods store. They had a lot in stock. I’m swinging by there later today, as I didn’t get to it yesterday. Hope I beat the rush. Some of the online sellers have stock too, check the usual suspects. There are always shortages and panics, but really, can you say that you have enough?

Stacks. Lots of stacks.

nick

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Mon. Jan. 29, 2024 – a whole new week, yippeee!

Ahem, cool to cold, clear for a bit. It was nice yesterday at the BOL with clear sky and sun, and a high in the mid to high 60s. Got cold quickly when the sun went down though…

I spent most of the day organizing the ‘big’ shed. I’ve been using it to store material for projects, and just dumping stuff into it. I took a bunch of stuff out, built some more of the steel shelves I got months ago at an estate sale with a bunch of circus stuff, and cleaned out wasp nests.

I made progress, is about all I can say. More to do later, but at least I have a better idea of what is in there, and there is room to move stuff from other places to the shed.

Today is ‘stuff around the house’ day, and maybe a pickup. Certainly I’ll be doing sorting and stacking for an auction drop off tomorrow, if my auctioneer agrees. I’ll be sorting in any case. Cookie time is coming and stuff needs to get out of the house to make room for cookies.

Really, all the auctions stuff should get out of the house, but that’s a task for another day.

———————
The stressors in the world and nation continue to increase tensions and the likelihood that it will all end in pain and bloodshed. Do as much as you can to brainstorm what that might look like in your area and for your life, then act accordingly.

Stack. Resources will help.

nick

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