Goats et al

Et al. It's an abbreviation we use in English for the Latin term, et alia, which means "and all that other stuff" or "everyone else."

Goats: It' s been an interesting couple of weeks. I spent my 100 degree days pulling goat fence off a mountain and then installing it on our property, only to have the goats escape and make a mockery of my work. They are peaceful animals, but they don't take to prison well. We are going to have to build a serious fence using cemented posts because the metal stakes aren't cutting it. Between that and cutting out some of overstretched deer fence, we should be ok. Give these guys a whole the size of their head, and you've got problems...

Back: In the process of the above, lifting 80 lb. bags of concrete with bad form, I pulled a muscle in my lower back, which has been bothering me for nearly two weeks. However, today I discovered the magic of Aleve, and I'm back in business as they say. So I chose to buy some for the home pharmacy. This way when the SHTF, and I am outside finishing my survivalist compound, and pull a back muscle, I can pop a few pills and still be ready for guard duty. Seriously, this stuff is rockin'. I went ahead and purchased the generic. Same stuff, lower price.

D&D Diversion: So being kinda laid up and all, I took a stroll down memory lane with Google and downloaded the 1988 Dos version of the game, Pool of Radiance, not to mention the code wheel, Adventurer's Journal, and clue book. Despite it's age, this game has it all: imaginative plot, cool tactics, and personality. The player really feels he is knee deep in another world. Maybe it's because this is the first real fantasy game I ever played. Perhaps, but it's still the best, even with it's several shortcomings.

SurvivalBlog: I've been tuning into SurvivalBlog.com, for lack of anything new and intelligent out there on the forums. SurvivalBlog.com is one of the best resources out there, in my opinion, for articles on SHTF scenarios. Not everything captures my interest, but enough to get me to come back a couple times a week. I imagine their archive is a mine of data and worth perusing. Anyway, once you understand the basics of preparedness, it's all about how far one takes it from there. We are at the (wannabe) homestead level, though it leaves me pulling my hair out when my neighbor shows up to announce that he has my goat...for the 9th time.

But better than survivalblog, is Backwoods Home magazine. Probably the same characters frequent both, but Backwoods is THE best, IMO, source regarding homesteading. They are serious, and seriously cool and more insane than me at that.

Latin & Classical: I've been tuning in to Classical music on the way to work. It helps calm my nerves on my commute after listening to how O and the democrats are destroying the country every day. It's this November or never. We need some authentic hope, and real change. I also want to give Latin a serious go--for it's own sake, because I am really challenged by it, and could fancy myself one day teaching it--but making that a reality is a steep climb. I need to finish my desk first, which requires me to finish my office area in the loft. Process. Process.

That's it in a nutshell, for now.

Over and Out,

--Nick-Dog

Tactical Milking Goats

Clare and I hooked up with two goats this past weekend. One is in milk, the other will be ready this fall to get pregnant, with kid(s) to come in the spring.

The way this all transpired is a Godsend. Truly. We weren't even planning on goats until next year, but not only did we get the goats, but we also received the fencing, hay, feed, and all the other miscellaneous stuff that goes with them. It's pretty crazy to be honest, but cool from a back to the earth and S&P (survival and preparedness) perspective.

It makes me wonder, though, about what's coming.

It could be that this was just a fortunate stroke of goodness that came our way. OR, it could be like God saying, BE READY. For what, I'll leave that up to you.

Either way, I like the goats, and I am really glad to have them as part of our homestead.

I'll be picking up the remainder of the fencing tomorrow, and start installing the fence around their pen and the chicken coup. This is all crazy to me, but it's really neat to be out there with a couple of new buddies while I work. Between the chickens and the goats, I have plenty of company.

That's it. I mean, we have goats now. We just need to catch up with this decision and make the necessary changes in our lives to accommodate them. Once we have that done and the garden finished it will be sweet sailing, I hope. But, as always, there will be more to do and more projects to complete.

Over and Out,

--Nick-Dog

PS--Stop waiting and buy your guns.

Marlin Glenfield Model 60

I've been waiting to purchase one since last Fall, and finally scored a sweet deal yesterday with a cool chap on www.vaguntrader.com. No waiting in line (except on I-95) and no fuss. The gun was exactly as described and it was nice meeting another gun dude. Purchased new in 1976 by the man's father, this was left on the gun rack for years and saw perhaps 100 rounds down the tube.

The condition of this firearm is like new, albeit with a few repaired scratches, and the etching and coloring on the stock is simply beautiful. This is your a-typical backwoods .22 from the 70s. The scope is a Redhead Outlook with a 3--9x40. It's a cheap optic, but it will do for now. For $130 for the package, I really couldn't pass on this deal, especially for a rifle in such pristine condition.

Anyway, pics to come, and hopefully lots of shooting too.

--Nick-Dog

Of Dark Elves...

The last few days I've been more listless than I can remember being in years. Normally, I feel a sense of purpose, a personal drive, which carries me through my day. But this torpor is difficult at best to endure. So I found myself seeking an escape--nay, motivation--and gravitated to some books I've been meaning to re-read at some point. The Dark Elf trilogy, by R.A. Salvatore. Of all his works, these are the most inspired. After 20 years of just seeing them on the shelf, I was pleased to find that the story still completely delivered. Drizzt Do'Urden is a bad ass of epic proportions, and his story as related through this trilogy is intense.

Anyway, I normally eschew the realm of fantasy, not out of animosity for the genre. Far from it. I keep it at a distance because I know my weakness. I could be consumed by it. So on a very limited basis, I allow myself the occasional foray to the realms of the imagination, this time to the Underdark, to the forbidden world of the Drow, (aka, Dark Elves).

Indeed, it has been less forbidding than my own backyard.

Over and Out,

--Nick-Dog