Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Thoughts on Mobility.

This is just a rambling post on thoughts that I have had on my mind the last couple of days.
I have been investigating how to go completely off-grid for a couple of years now and this is really nothing more than an extension of that thought line.
Seeing that Boaters have to be able to operate without landlines or utilities fed through a wire I went to those sites to further my information base. I am thinking that I would like to purchase a small tow behind camper and outfit it with the gear to go off grid. This would provide me with a couple of aspects that I have been craving. Something solid that I can call home for one. The ability to where I please for the other. I wouldn't be tied down to one specific area and if the area I were in started being a trouble spot(such as the one I live in now) just get up and go to somewhere else.

Thirdly it would provide me with my own personal space when I make the move to my dads neck of the woods to build my house.

I have been living in an efficiency for over a year now and have adapted quite well to limited space. I am actually comfortable with it now. Enough so that I look at the apartments I have been rehabbing and thinking that no one "needs" that much space to live comfortably.

I will be looking soon for that little slice of mobile domesticity here soon. And being that I am a handyman I will find it dirt cheap and make it my own. LOL Talking a couple of solar panels to charge the battery bank, an inverter for the stuff I have that can't convert to DC. Little things that make small living an adventure in and of itself. Most specifically new insulation in the walls and sealers for the roof to make sure that my little rolling paradise stays just that.

I am thinking that something like this will suffice so long as it has a head in it. Gots to have a place to do the business ya know.

This little gem (ignore the cheesy ad work. christ! you would think that something that gawdy wouldn't have made it into the ad.) would tow very easily behind my truck, would hold most if not all of my current belongings that weren't already designated to the truck itself, AND be enough that I could give up this silly street address thing.

And maybe I am just pipe dreaming.


We will see.

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Laying low. watching the cash flow (away)

Not really that bad this week but I am buying a rifle that is a bit pricey for me so I am laying low to stretch the cash out some. I had planned on doing work on the truck this weekend but the rain has pretty much dashed those plans onto the rocks. I still need to finish getting the axles pulled off the old one and I have a feeling that I am going to be taking a day off this week to make that happen. The winter weather is coming on fast this year. I don't want to get caught in the snow with slipping axles.

Been doing research into the Dragunov styled rifles the last couple of days. Watched a Youtube of a guy shooting one and have to say that I am impressed at how much recoil is absorbed by the cycle spring on this type or rifle; very little muzzle climb in comparison to the Mosin Nagant. No takers yet on the Mosin Nagant either. I may end up having to sell it at a store or take it to a gun show and take a loss on it. I have thought of keeping it but I just can't get around 'not needing three rifles'. I won't give up the SKS since she is just too utilitarian for the environment I live in. I don't really need the Dragunov either but I do want a competition rifle and the SKS just won't reach out to the distances I need for that and the Mosin is limited by the magazine and bolt along with hardware that I can install on her. The only upside of the Mosin is heavier bullets. The Dragunov doesn't like the heavier grained bullets in the soft point class(that I would want to use for animals like deer or larger). I started looking into reloading so that I can get the bullets I want for this rifle. If I start that I will seriously consider going down to one rifle. Till then the SKS stays and I have my hollow points for hunting with that. I don't ever see me shooting anything past 150 yards while in the Appalachians though. Too much cover so no need for the 'big guns' like a dragunov. Now if I move out west or to Texas; well, we will have to see. I would like to get the Dragunov out in the desert to stretch out and see what I could do with it. LOL I am such a shooter geek.

On the Political Front I am going to keep my thoughts to myself for a bit. Too many things have happened, been said, contradicted, etc, etc, for me to be comfortable with the directions we are headed. To wit, I have a friend that is in the same boat and has offered a direction to head if things get really funky. Its greatly appreciated too.

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Will someone PLEASE keep me away from the gunshops!?!?

Long story but here is how it started. I had made a comment to someone that if I could find one of these I would happily sell off my rifles.

Well I took my landlord to the range yesterday for his first lesson in handguns. (He did rather well but that's a different story) and the place we went had one. New in the box with all of the toys and gadgets that go with them. And for about $100 less than I have been finding them for on the net. Well after much self torture last night and feeble willful resistance today I broke down and went to the store and put money down on it today.

SOOO!!!!!!! without further Ado.

This,,,, is for sale. I have a scope and mount for her and I can supply a shot record for her for those that want to see the accuracy of her. She is no slouch for certain even if she is nearly 70 years old. I have done Trigger work on her and bedded the stock and that tightened up the grouping a lot. So With all of that I am asking $200 for her. If you are local I can make arrangements. If you are out of state I will have to figure something out. I have an FFL I can go through for that but I would figure the cost of going through that would raise the price far higher than she is worth.

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Flustered with ignorance.

The last couple of days have been interesting to me and frustrating as well. On Irate Nation there is a new member that is a liberal(I think that he is on the wrong forum but I am willing to debate subjects so no biggie). What is frustrating is the lack of resolve from Liberals. They harp so loudly about the abuses and 'fairness' but when someone confronts them with facts, they flee. Its exasperating to me.

That wasn't what this post is about though it definitely set the stage for what happened today. I was at work and our plumbers were on site working out details of a particular project that they are working on. Somehow (like the pistol butt sticking out of my waistband) the subject turned to rights, the law, and history(all rolled up into one the way I like them). Sadly though I found myself confronted by a racial bias (on their part, and I can't say its all wrong though they wouldn't hear my side of the coin) that just left me holding the bag as they walked away. Apparently they feel that for every law on the books there is one for the whites and one for the blacks. How do you approach this without looking like a fool or alienating the other party? By their logic they feel justified in the whole 'racial profiling' argument. And without actually having the time to use facts, I was left standing there trying get an answer to a question about WHY they think that way.

I know that IF they would take the time to learn more about how things really work instead of just assuming that what they have been taught is the gospel of truth, they would not be so quick to condemn. But then that's really the issue isn't it: Education? Or lack of proper education more like. At one point in my life I wanted to teach; circumstances dictated that I take a different route but even to this day I find I still want to teach. BUT, there isn't anyway I would be able to teach in our societal institutions with the discipline restrictions the way they are. I wouldn't tolerate the outbursts from today's kids the way the teachers have to now. Some young punk would get the paddle and I would be in jail for assault if some kid mouthed off to me the way I hear them mouthing off now. (In my days in school we would have taken home a sore ass only to get even more from the parents.)

This country is on the ropes with the way the liberals have made it with all of the little regulations and controls they have put in place. The Conservatives are equally at fault for falling asleep at the helm. There is so much that needs to be done to fix the issues at hand that I get flustered thinking about it. We need to fix the government by reducing its size and influence. We need to fix the economy by doing away with the Federal Reserve. We need to fix the education system by getting the Government out of the schools and allowing the teachers the flexibility to discipline again.(and make it so that the schools are in competition by showing RESULTS!) We need to be AWARE again and not let things slip so badly.

I see signs of hope. Saturday's showing in D.C. really gave me hope(probably why I opened up to the conversation today) but there is still A LOT of work to be done and even now things still look bleak. I worry that we are on the verge of a third revolution in this country and this time it will break us. The divide between the Conservatives and the Progressives is pretty substantial(I hate using monkeyspheres here but thats the only way to really show how rough things are.) I am not sure that we are going to be able to hold the center with the what I see coming. And there are many that other countries that would be more than willing to see us fall(and may help the process anyway they can.)

Time will tell.

I just worry what the future holds for my Kid and my Granbehbie. My time left is short enough that I don't fight for me but for them. I only hope that its not too late.

Then I turn around and see this and have to laugh. Most days I am envious of his bliss. But I think about it and am glad that I am not a 'pet' to someone or something.

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Completely amazed.

As much as people rag on GM about mismanagement and whatnot I have to say that they used to put out some pretty damned good products.


This is subjective to argument of course.

Still I am thoroughly amazed at the strength of my little truck. The only issues I had in towing this vehicle were in moving it out of the spot I had originally taken it to. Wet grass will do that when you are set up with street tires. Once I had her on the road though there wasn't a single hill or stop that I had issues with. Getting the Tahoe backed into the space was challenging but even there my little truck did it without any hiccups. Smoked the tires a couple of times but then I was trying to push a vehicle that has 1000 pounds on my truck and its tires kept twisting up in the wrong direction while going in reverse. At one point I did something that I have never done in this truck before. I know that the vacuum system to the 4X4 package is disconnected so I went ahead and put it in 4LO (which is actually 2LO since it won't engage the front axle) WOW!! Talk about torque! Woof! This little truck could pull a house if it could get the traction to hold the tires down. (key note: this truck also has nearly 200,000 miles on the odometer.)


Political Front report from what I was able to catch. 9-12 March on D.C. One of the promoters of the event stated while on stage that the estimate for the event was 1.5 million people. I know that I saw a literal sea of people from the steps of Congress all the way back to the Washington Monument. So many Gadsden flags and American flags waving. The sight was inspiring.

Wondering now when the PTB will react. Chances are they will do their best to ignore this. I know the report that I saw on CNN was pretty well downplayed. At least they managed to state that this isn't a Republican thing. They made it clear that many in the crowd are mad at both sides and only want the government to back up and hold to their oaths.

I will post more as I hear about it. Still wish I could have been there. Too many obligations and so little time.

Friday, September 11, 2009

Crazy weekend ahead.

Much going on this weekend. The 912 project and many other grassroots organizations are marching on D.C. this weekend. Sadly I am unable to attend this event though my spirit soars when I think of the number of conservatives going there to shout at the devil this weekend. I fear though that following this event, the PTB are going to ramp up the agenda push. This is like a shot in the dark for them to let them REALLY know that we are mad as hell and come next year there will be a culling of those up for re-election. They haven't much time to play their cards without receiving much resistance.

On the home front I am moving the donor vehicle to a closer location so that I can really dig into the repairs that I need to make on my truck. If my foreboding is correct I am going to need a VERY reliable vehicle that is capable of off road use. Currently I am not able to use the 4X4 on this truck due to mismatched axles. One thing I really do not like about were I live is a decent work site for automotive repairs. One thing I do miss about living out west was the Repair bays for rent. If I were a little better off Financially I would look into investing in something like that here. With the economy tanking around here there is a demand for such places. As it is though most of what I am bringing home now goes to invest in building my 'compound'. LOL Like its going to be that but its fun to think of. Still there will be more workshop on site there than actual home. I am such a tinkerer that I have to keep my shops seperate from my living space or I never get any sleep. I tend to push through projects to completion at the cost of eat and sleep. My one quirk that shows my obsessive compulsive disorder.(Tesla and Edison were the same way I hear. )

No range trip this weekend due to a full schedule. I will be showing my face at the local meetup for the 912/Beck show tomorrow. After that it will be stripping as many useful parts off the donor in preparation of actual repair. I still need to manage getting to see Granbehbie and Daughter at some point. Granbehbie has a new word too. Heard her saying it on the phone tonight. "uh-oh" Too cute too. She is totally showing her mother who really is in charge over there too. LOL.

Sunday, September 6, 2009

Goin Mobile.

Been having fun today exercising an old skill. I needed more space in my truck box and have been having issues working with my cartools while they are kept in there. That is the dilemma that inspired me to build a new 'roadcase'.


I used to build roadcases for my audio equipment so that I could take it out on the road with me without damage. This is a very simple roadcase that I made today but it gave me about 3 cubic feet of space in my truckbox for more carpentry tools AND makes it much easier to access the tools for working on the truck without having to completely unload EVERYTIME. Yeah me!


OH and Van Jones Resigned today. Major score for the conservatives. Thats one avowed communist out of the White house, now we need to work on getting the rest of the Socialists/progressives/Liberals out. The media is playing it off as too much pressure but not truly disclosing the facts (like we expected them to be truthful, HAHAHAHAHA!) Still this is a win for us. There are many more to go and MAYBE just maybe we can get this taken care of BEFORE we have to start shooting.