Update: I like the sound of your weather SteveU. We have been warm here. I have spent the last two days in bed under the air conditioner. My pain levels are much lower than they have been before that, but Saturday evening I was having a lot of soreness etc, from what finally showed itself to be an infection of some sort. Apparently, all surgical wounds are supposed to drain. My did not until Sunday evening. Apparently the glue they used sealed it up and didn’t let it do its thing. After that problem ruptured and drained, most of my pain problems went away. I am taking antibiotics and sleeping a lot because I still have no energy. But, even though I have an infection, I feel 80% better than I did 2 days ago. Most of the pain that remains is from my new sedentary lifestyle. Tight tendons, cramped muscles.
I seem to get a lot of visits from my children in the hottest parts of the day…
Also, we seem to be getting more rain than usual for this time of year. It is kind of nice for the gardens, no irrigation so far this year.albeit, I haven’t seen them for several days.
O.K. fellows here is a heads-up.
I just got done with long deferred spark plug changes on three different vehicles.
A 2009 Toyota Avelon. A 2014 Ford Edge. A 2007 Hyundia Tucson.
All sideways double overhead cams V-6’s requiring the removals of the upper intake air plenums to be able to access the rear three cylinders spark plug wells.
All with original good-for-100,000 mile spark plugs. A mix of Denso, NGK and Motocraft iridium and platinum tipped plugs.
I replaced all with Iridium NGK’s. The Denso for the Toyota and the Motocraft for the Ford are a long-away travel-to dealership items here for me. Or a long wait special order ship-in.
Two of the NGK numbers I local sourced were an “IX” model version. One was a “Laser” version. Now, after the fact, I find that only the NGK Lasers are rated as 100K life plugs! The IX’s are a 60K rated performance orientated plug. Be ok-fine on an easier to-do in 20-40 minutes, four cylinder engine.
Oh well. My hands will be well healed by the time I have to re-do two of these sidewinder DOHC V-6’s.
AND knowing ahead I will have the time to pre-stock with the better 100K lifed plugs versions.
Live and learn. Bleed a bit with the learning. Sigh.
Good news.
I found two current books that update the old Five Acres and Independence book quite well.
the doable off-grid homestead (the title is actually in non-caps)
by Stewart and Shannon Stonger
on five acres moved down from the thousand lakes MN to central Texas
BACKYARD HOMESTEADING - A Back-To-Basics Guide to Self Sufficiency
by David Toht
For smaller lots. Very, very detailed. Large format. Lots and lots of colored pictures. Give homage to the late 19th century previous “The Cultivator”, “The Prairie Farmer”; and the 1940’s “Have-More Plan” information efforts guides.
Ha! The difference between homesteading approach; and the eco-green-spin publications; imho, is the homesteading focus is on what you can do for you&yours. Versus, what you Must-Do to Save the Planet (from humankind pestilence).
I dislike much being preached down-too. And insistence’s, harangued. By anyone. For anything.
Regards to all - back to weeds slaying
Steve unruh
Hmm, this is why you should always read DOW in the morning - I just also put some NGK iridium plugs into a 2008 Prius that I just got - and now I am wishing I had spent the extra couple bucks for the “Laser” ones! Why all the silly names, and not simply call them what they are NGK: 60k’s or NGK 120k’s? Anyhow, At least on that little 4 cylinder, with a dab of anti-seize they will be easy to pop back out in a few years time. The ones I replaced had seen some hard miles, and made me a little nervous that they were going to get stuck. At least a shorter life means less time to get seized up in there, right?
Last weekend a friend and I went on a back road tour around my land. Sadly I have been so busy with the day to day to have hardly explored the area.
It’s interesting country, settled after 1905 (when it was surveyed), by Ukrainians, orthodox and Catholic domed churches and cemeteries every few miles. Almost everything is abandoned now, including this old school turned into a house. Curtains are still on the windows, bed is still made. Somebody mows the grass, so it’s still respected. The hand pump well is still out front near the road.
It troubles me, that an area that raised so many people should be empty now, the descendants flung from California to Halifax, the cemeteries, community halls and churches where their grandparents were christened and married never returned to.
I fear that we have engaged in a devil’s bargain, trading real life for convenience. And by the time the tide turns, the descendants will be so unskilled, and forgotten where they came from.
That’s the story world wide. People leaving rural areas to find work and convenience in cities. Often ending up in slums because there is no work available as hoped for. As for lost skill/knowledge. Huge generational problem. The great (sometimes great great) grand parents here were the last to really live on the land (with some obvious exceptions) The grandparents saw it done but most didn’t actually do it themselves. Every generation getting further and farther from that life. Not sure what the answer is. But I think the loss of skill sets and lifestyle is a great loss to society and future generations. But then, the reality is, markets drive everything. So who knows. It’s just a shame that we have to lose all the knowledge and then re learn it later.
We are dealing with the same problem in DRC. Most of the working aged adults there now were born in refugee camps or in the bush during the genocide/war. The only skills they have is hunting gathering…wildlife diminished. Or soldiering. Now what do they do. War is over, their parent’s or grandparents dead or lacking tools and shops to train them. A whole society made ignorant in one generation. Barely scraping by…or worse, going to neighboring countries as mercenaries.
War or pursuit of convenience/city life…same result. Separation of people from the land. There is something detrimental about that reality…
I was corresponding with a bicycle riding, Starbucks and butterfly garden dyed in the wool urbanite not long ago. My comment was, though urbanism is definitely the most convenient way of life people have ever lived, “don’t bet the farm on it…”
Urban enthusiasts also seem to have trouble doing the math on their global diets and lifestyles.
Or figuring what they would do to live if their complex system ever faltered.
But, 100% unskilled they certainly are. The first thing that falters in their ultraspecialized dream, and they are effectively the walking dead, no matter how nice their bicycle, or flower garden is.
We have a lot to be thankful for, living in a peaceful continent, as you point out. People have no appreciation how valuable real skills are, and how hard to gain. Same as tools, they are only useful if you have them before you need them.
I hear all the time, “I’ll learn all that stuff if everything falls apart.” But there is only so much one can learn while he’s learning everything else at one time. Bottom line is that is not possible. I don’t get too worked up about scares and threats and all that. But I would fear for a lot of people if there would be a significant “faultering” event in the system. Those of us who are more prepared for such times would have it hard enough being limited in availability of our conveniences and addictions., etc. I can’t imagine what would happen to people who are completely dependent on ALL the system.
90 degrees predicted for today 95 for tomorrow I;v got 6 or more cords of oak on the ground that I need to stack. I’m going to sit here in the air conditioned house and look at it until it cools off a bit .Hay this is Michigan not Alabama ain’t suppose to get this hot here. I’m just saying.
We are looking at the same type of oppressive heat here the next 4 days in NH. Much like you I have decided my haying can wait I have other projects I can work on inside or in the shade besides there is a high risk of thunderstorms every other day right now as well. Hopefully Monday this will be behind us I have a ton of hay to cut.
Sounds like an average July to me. LOL. But I will confess that I am enjoying this little window unit air conditioner in the bed room keeping it down to about 80 degrees. I have been supposed to keep from sweating with this infection I had from surgery, so we have it in the window. It is a little hard to think about turning it off. I’m getting spoiled a little. I was able to work a half day today doing mechanic work from about 10 to 6. We had a rain shower and some cloud cover that helped cool things off. And no drugs today except tylenol and CBD oil. Actually no narcotics since Sunday. I can sure feel it though.
One day at a time I guess.
We are 96 with high humidity. I will take cold anyday I can always put on another layer and go stand by my wood stove in the winter. You can only take off so much and you are still hot.
Been working on putting my loader tractor back together after a motor overhaul that has been a nightmare if it could go wrong it did. But it is mostly back together now I have a few questions for my mechanic who doesn’t get back till Tuesday from a trip but hopefully by the end of the day Tuesday it will be back in the fields.
Yeah, but you never shiver…unless you have heat stroke of course.
This debate always reminds me of a day in Nashville, TN putting on a roof in mid July with a crew of 40 guys. We were doing a big community charity job to pay medical bills I think. It was 109F that day, but on the roof it was so hot our shoes were sticking to the metal. By 10 AM all the water jugs were empty and we had to switch to drinking chlorinated city water. After about 20 minutes the roof was steaming with dripping sweat and the whole place smelled like a public swimming pool.
Yeah, Good Times. Far better than shivering.
I even turned the air conditioner off in the bedroom yesterday. Getting too cold around here. LOL.
Shiveing has never made the areas stink either. But I have had heat stroke a few times in my life not an experience I want to repeat when the world fades out to white you are in serious trouble.
When I was in the Army at Ft Benning GA, we would have these folks from up north come in and not be used to the heat and would drop like flies everywhere in the Georgia summer heat in uniform. We had coolers full of blankets and ice water everywhere we went so we could wrap them in cold blankets as soon as they went down. They actually court-martialed a couple of them for being heat casualties too many times. They said they were doing it deliberately to get out of duty by not drinking enough water.
It is not just about drinking water. I can actually drink too much water and not sweat at all. Gatorade is better for me. But there are studies showing that people who live in hotter climates actually have thinner blood which helps their body deal with the heat. The 18 months I spent in Tiawan made me feel the cold more the first winter I got home but I quickly adjusted back to this climate.
Shiveing has never made the areas stink either. But I have had heat stroke a few times in my life not an experience I want to repeat when the world fades out to white you are in serious trouble. 