Category: Random Stuff

Cool and wet.

Yesterday turned into a fine, if somewhat cool day. Nice clear sky and sunshine.

I skipped the chiropractor yesterday but will try to get in to see him today. Both my pain and range of motion are almost back to normal.

I wasn’t going to buy more stuff at auction, but I really couldn’t help myself with this one. 3000 lots of camping, outdoors, and tactical stuff, including gub parts and accessories, armor, fishing gear, and Mr Heaters… I might have overspent a bit. It just means I’ll have to sell some to cover the rest. Why does something like this auction come up when I’m in the mood I’m in, with the world the way it is? Fate. That’s my answer and I’m sticking to it.

I really do need to inventory and sort. I’ve been on a tear lately and need to pause and catch up. Can’t just ‘buy all the things!11!!1’ I also have some high value items purchased specifically for resale that need to be resold. Hard to let go of useful things, but I really need to. They won’t get sold if they don’t get listed.

I really don’t need the distraction of replacing my phone. But, some of you will remember, I got plenty of warning, and should have acted all those weeks ago when I first thought of it. Let that be a lesson, I guess. Maybe one of my old one’s will work for a couple of days with my current sim.. add trying that out to the pile of stuff to do.

Wife will want Christmas decor to be taken down and put away too. I put that off as long as possible as I find it to be quite melancholy… but it has to be done too. Kids will be back in school this coming week which has both pluses and minuses…

Fun times ahead! [and only partly sarcastic]

It’s a great life if you don’t falter, right?

n

Cold and damp. Of course.

Yesterday started nice out, but then in the afternoon, some ugly clouds and high winds brought the cold. It got chilly. My shorts were def not advised.

Stopped by my friend the merchant of death’s place. Ended up with 5 boxes of 9mm. No idea what to do with them, as all my gubs failed to float after the accident….. guess I’ll keep them for barter 😉

I’ve got a couple of auction pickups today both power related. I got a nice West Marine battery charger in one auction, and the previously mentioned battery charger/ 2000w inverter in another. That will push my solar project along… I’ve heard that I can get reconditioned forklift batteries from a local scrap yard/ battery reseller. I’ve heard that they also have deep cycle marine batteries. I suppose I can bite the bullet and buy new, but for a secondary system I’ll probably never need, that’s a big bite.

I’m still sore and feeling under the weather, so I’m still taking it easy. Which sucks as there is so much to do.

I’m taking my own advice and that kindly offered by others here and starting to stretch in an organized fashion. I’ll be doing most of a regimen that previously had me able to kick over my head, and do some really deep squats. I don’t know if I can find a class to help refresh me, but I can get started on the basics from memory. Some Chi Gong exercises are also included in the progression. I have some small regrets that I didn’t continue my martial arts studies for the last 15 – 20 years. I’d be in a different place physically, that’s for certain. OFD’s tale has me looking over my shoulder metaphorically at every twinge and pain.

Well, I better get started on something before I lose the whole morning.

n

Cold and wet.

Rained off and on most of yesterday.

I mostly laid around, and fought the nausea from the pain in my neck and shoulders.

Finally got the chiropractor. Got instant relief, but it doesn’t last. I’ll be going back today and tomorrow at least.

Grabbed dinner for the family at Five Guys Burgers. Yeah, it’s a tasty burger but $50 for me and the kids? Crazy. I can get 5 pounds of decent steak for that.

Won a couple of things at auction yesterday too. 2000w inverter for an RV for $200. That’s 1/3 of ebay for the same model. And it’s 2000w continuous. Won a couple of parts gubs. Brand no one wants, so I got them cheap enough to simply part out. Parts sell well on gunbroker though, which is a bit odd.

I got a couple of ebay listings done and turned my store back on. Sitting at the pc and typing aggravates my shoulder pain so I’m trying to avoid it.

Wife’s working again today so I’ve got taggalong kids whatever I do… their marathon Harry Plopper binge should be over later today.

And if that’s not a dog’s breakfast of a post I don’t know what is, go and sin no more.

n

Cold and wet. Probably.

Yesterday was lost to productivity due to back and neck pain. I don’t lose many days in a year to pain, but yesterday was one. Today isn’t looking good either but the chiropractic office should be open, and that should help.

I don’t do formal resolutions anymore, but I do pick something to emphasize during the coming year. Last year it was stretching and exercise, and neither happened. The year went by so fast, I never got to it.

This year, it’s getting rid of my inventory, so that I can do more of the work and hobbies I enjoy. Stretching will have to happen or I’ll be backsliding. Can’t afford to lose any more strength or flexibility. Some sort of self-defense training will have to happen too. I’ve been super slack getting to the range. That has to change.

Other than that, more of the same. MOAR!!!111!!!! More skills, more stacking, more meatspace.

If any of y’all have any resolutions you’d like to share, feel free. Maybe we can encourage each other to keep them.

n

I’m writing this during the last dregs of 2019, so I hope that events haven’t taken a turn for the worse while I tried to sleep.

There is enough stuff going on in the world to keep me up, but I’m really hoping none of it got moving last night.

Y2K was 20 years ago. So I’ve been some degree of prepper for 20 years. And for 20 years the big one keeps not happening. WHICH IS AWESOME.

Because the ‘little’ ones were big enough. 9-11. Rodney King riots. Northridge quake. Oakland quake. Katrina. Rita. Ike. the triple play. And many more in other places, and for other people…

There is almost always something bad happening to someone, somewhere. Whether or not you are the someone is really not up to you. How you react, is.

Live your life. Do not be afraid. Be PREPARED.

And welcome to another new decade. Take a moment today to remember those who didn’t quite get here with us.

May we all have a Safe and Prosperous New Year.

nick flandrey

Cold and wet.

Yesterday was not warm, but wasn’t too cold either. I suck as a weather forecaster, just like the pros!

I did get my tire fixed, but that was about all. I just didn’t feel right all day. Not the time to be doing anything heavy.

I’m not going to do a big ‘year in review’ post, but I encourage you all to take stock mentally (or actually) of your current condition, vs a year ago. Take a good look around and see if things have changed, and in what direction. Re-read a few of the blog posts and comments from a year ago, then two years, then 3. Look at a whole week in case the day you choose was a slow day for some reason.

Because prepping is a focus for me, and was for RBT, take a look at your level of preparedness. Consider skills, knowledge, physicality, financial state, and stored value….

Take a few moments to consider which paths you need to walk this coming year, and which you feel ok with.

None of us are sure of the future. We make predictions, but no one gets them right in detail or in totality both. Most of us have decided to act as if we can know something about the future though, and take steps to work within what we expect.

The changing of the year is a great time for both reflection and prediction. Don’t beat yourself up too badly for failures during the year- after all, you got through them. Don’t get too committed to your predictions for the future- after all, how good were they last year? Most of us will try to do a little better than simply muddling through, and most of us will succeed.

I’ve got a feeling that we’ll look back on this year as one of ‘the good old days’.

n

Warm and damp, probably.

After yesterday’s tire troubles, I’m hoping to finish with the whole thing today. It has caused me to consider a couple of prep things though. I’ve got one mounted spare for my Expy, and another bare tire. I’ve also got a bare tire for my wife’s minivan. Both should be mounted spares.

I’ve also learned that my vehicle repair preps are a bit underwhelming. I need to keep my eyes open for a compressor that can fill tires, and a floor jack that won’t buckle. I’ve got ordinary maintenance items and tools but thought I had the tires covered. Not so much as it turns out.

Some days I feel like I’m falling farther and farther behind. And what sucks is I KNOW I am in several areas I think are important. It’s gonna be tricky to catch up, and there might have to be some triage involved.

Fortunately, the new year is right around the corner, and that is a traditional time to regroup, rethink, and resolve to make changes. I know you can make them any time, but it helps to have some social weight attached.

There are a couple of other anniversaries coming up too. More on those as appropriate later.

Now, once more into the breach….

n

Warm and wet.

Got home last night. Long day. Kids opened one present each. We’ll open the rest of the presents we left at home this morning. I remember most years growing up having multiple “Christmas days” with various family members (or branches of the family) who couldn’t all be in the same place at the same time. It does prolong the season….

House was a bit stuffy, but otherwise fine. It’s a mess from the rush to get on the road. We’ll fix that later.

Hopefully the drizzle from last night won’t stick around all day.

And I hope I am still sleeping in!

n

Cold, damp.

Last night I discovered that my daughter had locked us out of my siblings house. Unfortunately, it was 9pm when I found out that she had locked the door from the garage to the house, which was supposed to be our entry path. Much texting ensued to see if there was a hidden key. Nope. Mom had a key, but it turned out to be one lock change out of date.

It did fit the keyway though. Return to mom’s. Some quick work with a hacksaw blade and the file on my Gerber multitool, and i had a good looking bump key. I was only carrying the Gerber, because I can’t carry in IL, so I had a belt pouch free. Thought I’d have to wait for Ace hardware to open.

Back over to the house, and quick success with the deadbolt. No joy on the knob, something is wrong with it, which is why my sibling doesn’t normally lock it. I didn’t have any oil, and didn’t want to stay any longer,so I put it off to today, in daylight.

So, where was the prep? I had my go bag in the car. ID, lappy, change of clothes, one day’s meds, chargers, money, etc. That bag goes where I go. I could get on a plane with just that if I had to, or if I couldn’t get back to my suitcase. I had my multi tool. That gave me timely options. The main thing though was knowledge. I had made a bump key and practiced with it at home.

We’re headed over there shortly and I’ll update, but I don’t expect any issues in the daylight.

N

PS, wife was not prepared to get on a plane if needed. Hopefully, I will have a better chance of getting that next time.

Colder but still wet.

Got to the south suburbs of Chicago yesterday. Had a nice lunch, then did minor stuff for mom.

Today will be more of the same, either early or late, One of the museums in between, not sure yet which one.

Posting from phone due to Wi-Fi issues, so short and sweet…

Be good to yourselves and the one’s you love.

N