We had a great little birthday party, reminding someone that 40 is just a number and no one gives a crap. I was very helpful and didn't care if we were late, forgot something, etc. It wasn't my day so I took one day off from being a pest.
The real birthday was yesterday so we all loaded up in the rigs for a little snow wheeling and just a generic get out of town day. The trail had some snow and ice in places but we still had a great day of wheeling. I had mother in-law with me most of the ride since my vehicle is a hard top (well this particular vehicle is anyhow) and each time she got nervous she would gasp or scream, it was like watching someone on a roller coaster for the firs time. She had a great time and it was nice to spend a few hours just talking about stuff, including some things to pick up at the store each time she goes to work on the food stores. I told her to just take charge of it, including organizing the cabinets from oldest to newest, etc. It's better if 1 person does it, imo, then it's organized a certain way that makes the most sense to the person that;s involved in it the most.
I also ordered some FD peaches since they are the entire #10 can in a week. Baby steps.
Our new dog Rock didn't enjoy the off roading as much as we thought he would. He was curled up on the rover floor shaking and scared, I think the bouncing around was too much for his first long trip in a vehicle. Normal trips are 15-20 minutes, not 8 hours, but we took plenty of breaks to help him get his legs back. He did well socializing with strangers, only a few growls and barks spread over the entire day. My boy Luke of course was just hanging out enjoying having the entire backseat to himself and laying his head on the door staying nice and toasty in the sun.
We ended up with 5 vehicles and 12 people and about 50 guns. Someone commented that they always have a bag packed with weapons that's ready to go, but it wasn't like my get home bag, they only had weapons. I told them it's easy with a MOLLIE type back, just strap everything on like I do, the shotgun on one side, extra handgun mags on the other. You can have a nice weapon cache as well as a get home bag but it does get a little bit heavy so choose your gear wisely.
Oh yes. Meatloaf....
5 pieces of bread plucked into small bits, 1.25 pounds ground beef, 1 medium onion chopped up, some spices and a pint of buttermilk. Place in loaf pan, cover in ketchup bake at 350 for 75 minutes. I ate about 60% of the loaf, and some green beans, I love simple meals that taste so good. This recipe is great for a solar oven and if you don't have buttermilk you can make your own from your food stores; 1 cup milk (powdered milk, water) 4 teaspoons vinegar or lemon juice. Let stand 15 minutes and you have buttermilk. Some people like BBQ sauce and such instead of ketchup but I am very traditional with some of my food.
If you buy high fat content burger you might have to drain the fat once you take it out of the over. I prefer sirloin, 90/10 or 93/7 hamburger.
That reminds me I forgot to get the sausage and burger out for spaghetti. Guess that will be a tomorrow night dinner.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Friday, January 13, 2012
The weekend!
It's almost time to head home, cook some steaks and taters, and play ball with the dogs. It's going to be in the upper 50's this weekend for some nice sunshine days.
The weekends are a good time for me to get some prep stuff done around the homestead. Everyone have a super weekend, have some fun and live life well. I have things to do, here is my list;
Costco run to replace items opened/used in the last 2 weeks.
Charge spare marine battery
Let all vehicles run for 10 minutes to top off those batteries, check tire pressure and fluid levels.
Swap propane tank for BBQ grill, refill old tank and put it back into rotation storage.
Saturday 12 mile trail run to work on endurance, slow pace
Sunday 8 mile trail run, faster pace for speed endurance
Prep storage mouse-trap check and overall condition check on boxes/containers.
Laundry (never ends for some reason).
The most important prep I have to do this weekend:
Throw spouses 40th birthday party. If I don't do this well, TEOTWAWKI might suddenly be here.
The weekends are a good time for me to get some prep stuff done around the homestead. Everyone have a super weekend, have some fun and live life well. I have things to do, here is my list;
Costco run to replace items opened/used in the last 2 weeks.
Charge spare marine battery
Let all vehicles run for 10 minutes to top off those batteries, check tire pressure and fluid levels.
Swap propane tank for BBQ grill, refill old tank and put it back into rotation storage.
Saturday 12 mile trail run to work on endurance, slow pace
Sunday 8 mile trail run, faster pace for speed endurance
Prep storage mouse-trap check and overall condition check on boxes/containers.
Laundry (never ends for some reason).
The most important prep I have to do this weekend:
Throw spouses 40th birthday party. If I don't do this well, TEOTWAWKI might suddenly be here.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Do you know too much?
There I was, an hour from home dressed for a speed run, standing on the side of the dirt road right before the trail started. I had 3 choices and each choice was about 3.5 miles, so I was in the middle, at an intersection of choices... but I was hurting, bad. Wick away t-shirt, track tempo skimpy shorts, shoes and a knife... no gloves, hat, etc. I was loaded for speed.
I'm not some dainty little runner, I'm 190 pounds of 'oh crap I hope I can stop when I run downhill so I don't slide off the cliff and die'. 190 pounds is a lot to pound on almost daily and it apparently caught up to me last night. I started off really fast, my body started to complain and then felt great, but a little ways down the road I realized something was wrong. My left shin was hurting like shin splints had set in to the point I couldn't put any weight on it without seeing stars. My pain tolerance is very high, so there was a lot of pain... it was getting cold and dark fast.
Each time you put your foot down, you usually take the same kind of step (foot strike), middle, back, front, side, etc. You can look at your shoes and see the wear on your soles and it's pretty easy to figure out what kind of step you take. I'm pretty flat, so it's a lot of pounding each time and when I head downhill it's more of a back to front. This uses a lot of energy, since you actually slow down when your foot hits on the back and then propel yourself as you step off, and this uses the most muscles out of any srike. The best downhill runners are front foot runners, they run on their toes, this keeps the momentum going so they are almost falling down the hill with each step simply keeping them from falling. A front foot strike is sort of leaping with each step as if you were bounding from rock to rock in a field... you leap off your toes and land on your toes.
Depending on the type of step you take, different muscle groups will work for that type of step. Some work the whole leg, some work the calf, some work the shin area... high stepping works the thighs but is useless unless it's deep snow, no snow means you are working hip flexors (and looking sillier than normal).
I like to think I know a lot of things, most of it useless, but I don't think you can ever know too much. You never know when odd information might come in handy... like when you are in pain on the side of a road debating search and rescue or a long painful walk in the dark, in the cold with skimpy 'look how fast I'm NOT running' clothes on. This is when your mind starts to work trying to find a solution from all the the useless knowledge you have.
Since I knew a lot about steps, muscles, strides, foot strike, etc. I chose the steepest route home. This would have been the worst route to pick from had I tried to run or even walk normally. I shortened my stride and ran on my toes, and used a lot of different leg muscles that normal. 40 minutes later I was home. Had I walked the easiest route it wold have taken me about 90 minutes and since that route is iced over at night I would have probably slipped and hurt other things. I couldn't have run on my toes unless it was a steep downhill, if you try then you simply jam your legs with each step and that won't last long.
So now everyone has some useless information that might help them out one day. I'm heading to a CPR class to refresh some other useless information that might save someone, someday. Plus I get to make out with a plastic person.
I'm not some dainty little runner, I'm 190 pounds of 'oh crap I hope I can stop when I run downhill so I don't slide off the cliff and die'. 190 pounds is a lot to pound on almost daily and it apparently caught up to me last night. I started off really fast, my body started to complain and then felt great, but a little ways down the road I realized something was wrong. My left shin was hurting like shin splints had set in to the point I couldn't put any weight on it without seeing stars. My pain tolerance is very high, so there was a lot of pain... it was getting cold and dark fast.
Each time you put your foot down, you usually take the same kind of step (foot strike), middle, back, front, side, etc. You can look at your shoes and see the wear on your soles and it's pretty easy to figure out what kind of step you take. I'm pretty flat, so it's a lot of pounding each time and when I head downhill it's more of a back to front. This uses a lot of energy, since you actually slow down when your foot hits on the back and then propel yourself as you step off, and this uses the most muscles out of any srike. The best downhill runners are front foot runners, they run on their toes, this keeps the momentum going so they are almost falling down the hill with each step simply keeping them from falling. A front foot strike is sort of leaping with each step as if you were bounding from rock to rock in a field... you leap off your toes and land on your toes.
Depending on the type of step you take, different muscle groups will work for that type of step. Some work the whole leg, some work the calf, some work the shin area... high stepping works the thighs but is useless unless it's deep snow, no snow means you are working hip flexors (and looking sillier than normal).
I like to think I know a lot of things, most of it useless, but I don't think you can ever know too much. You never know when odd information might come in handy... like when you are in pain on the side of a road debating search and rescue or a long painful walk in the dark, in the cold with skimpy 'look how fast I'm NOT running' clothes on. This is when your mind starts to work trying to find a solution from all the the useless knowledge you have.
Since I knew a lot about steps, muscles, strides, foot strike, etc. I chose the steepest route home. This would have been the worst route to pick from had I tried to run or even walk normally. I shortened my stride and ran on my toes, and used a lot of different leg muscles that normal. 40 minutes later I was home. Had I walked the easiest route it wold have taken me about 90 minutes and since that route is iced over at night I would have probably slipped and hurt other things. I couldn't have run on my toes unless it was a steep downhill, if you try then you simply jam your legs with each step and that won't last long.
So now everyone has some useless information that might help them out one day. I'm heading to a CPR class to refresh some other useless information that might save someone, someday. Plus I get to make out with a plastic person.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Roll Tide
In a world that's not always so positive, it was nice to put everything on hold for a few hours and watch some good football.
Good if you like Alabama and can't stand LSU. Good if you like the icing on the cake of a shutout.
Oregon sort of let me down this year but I can usually count on Alabama to give me some fantastic games and good finishes. This was no exception.
It also gave me 3 hours to cook my beef stew.
Good if you like Alabama and can't stand LSU. Good if you like the icing on the cake of a shutout.
Oregon sort of let me down this year but I can usually count on Alabama to give me some fantastic games and good finishes. This was no exception.
It also gave me 3 hours to cook my beef stew.
Monday, January 9, 2012
mmm pancakes!
Once in a while I sleep in on Sunday until about 8:30, cuddling with the dogs until they need to head outside. Pancakes are a great breakfast for any day of the week, but to me they are normally reserved for Sunday. Whole grain with a little butter and some real maple syrup that I have shipped in from back home in NH. Over the years I've gone through all kinds of different types of mix including from scratch and my actual favorite is some mix I have in food storage from Shelf Reliance.
Pancakes are cheap, easy and very filling even if you just eat them plain.
I needed a sleep in day, my Saturday run just about killed me. My run was perfect, my pace was good and when I got to the top of the 1300 foot climb I had 1/2 a mile of ice and snow to cover and turn around to repeat. This 1 mile total section took me over 20 minutes and really hurt my ankles. The rest of my run was crap as I mentally struggled with my now horrible pace and painful strides. Some motrin was taken and a long hot to cold bath and I could limp around the house. The sleep in gave me extra recovery time so my run on Sunday was fantastic. It's good to punish the body and since my legs felt great I gave everything I had into my run and finished the last half mile in about 3.5 minutes. I almost threw up when I stopped, that's leaving it all on the trail.
The in-laws are up to 3 days of meals, set aside with water and a 10 year shelf life. I had to start them somewhere so I figured some mountain house stuff would be the best. I have them covered for long term, I'm trying to get them to get a longer supply of medication. Heart medication and occasional oxygen... in a shtf situation they would be ok based on medical issues, they would just need to relax and not get excited about anything. Having 60 days worth of medical stock would be the best, but I'm working with baby steps. I spent some time with my Mormon neighbors last night talking about all kinds of stuff and I realized I'm going to have a house full of people if the worlds goes to hell. 2 families loaded for WW3, the in laws, my other neighbor friend and her daughter and of course my family. Now I just need a few thousand dollars from everyone.
I haven't spent any money at Starbucks in 9 days. I've only sworn about 25 times (out loud, does inside count?) in 9 days. My running is going strong with my new training plan, I am planning all the meals at home in advance so I know what to cook/eat, and I'm being a better friend to the people I care about. My resolutions are going strong and now I'm hungry for pancakes.
Pancakes are cheap, easy and very filling even if you just eat them plain.
I needed a sleep in day, my Saturday run just about killed me. My run was perfect, my pace was good and when I got to the top of the 1300 foot climb I had 1/2 a mile of ice and snow to cover and turn around to repeat. This 1 mile total section took me over 20 minutes and really hurt my ankles. The rest of my run was crap as I mentally struggled with my now horrible pace and painful strides. Some motrin was taken and a long hot to cold bath and I could limp around the house. The sleep in gave me extra recovery time so my run on Sunday was fantastic. It's good to punish the body and since my legs felt great I gave everything I had into my run and finished the last half mile in about 3.5 minutes. I almost threw up when I stopped, that's leaving it all on the trail.
The in-laws are up to 3 days of meals, set aside with water and a 10 year shelf life. I had to start them somewhere so I figured some mountain house stuff would be the best. I have them covered for long term, I'm trying to get them to get a longer supply of medication. Heart medication and occasional oxygen... in a shtf situation they would be ok based on medical issues, they would just need to relax and not get excited about anything. Having 60 days worth of medical stock would be the best, but I'm working with baby steps. I spent some time with my Mormon neighbors last night talking about all kinds of stuff and I realized I'm going to have a house full of people if the worlds goes to hell. 2 families loaded for WW3, the in laws, my other neighbor friend and her daughter and of course my family. Now I just need a few thousand dollars from everyone.
I haven't spent any money at Starbucks in 9 days. I've only sworn about 25 times (out loud, does inside count?) in 9 days. My running is going strong with my new training plan, I am planning all the meals at home in advance so I know what to cook/eat, and I'm being a better friend to the people I care about. My resolutions are going strong and now I'm hungry for pancakes.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Things you put in storage
I'm a little exhausted this week, the dogs have decided they want to lay on me when I fall asleep. I suppose most people don't mind that but I don't like to be touched when I'm sleeping and an 85 pound dog laying across my legs causes me all sorts of issues. I even changed sides of the bed and it's only helped a little. No matter how I move them, make them lay on the floor, etc... I wake up with a wagging tail and sore legs, but I'm happy to have the boys.
I'm training my butt off for the upcoming spring trail running season. Last year I put in over 1500 miles and well over 400 hours (a lot more if I take driving into consideration), I'm a little OCD. I did my first run of the year on Sunday to help raise money for search and rescue and compared to last year I dropped almost 8 minutes off my time. Myy neighbor wanted to run 4 miles with me an did, 2 times now, not bad for only running off and on for 2 months. It takes us 1:06 to run those 4 miles, last night I ran them on my own at a blistering ice sliding around corners time of 34 minutes. On sore legs..
I picked up a pair of trail shoes at REI, not the kind I can run in (I tried once and sent them back, but they are great for regular shoes), these are very light and don't overheat on a hot day at work. I picked up 2 more pair since they were on sale and put them on a shelf downstairs so I have 3 pair of shoes sitting there. I read a lot about what kinds of things people have in preps, I try to keep things that I will use and would miss down the road. People have all kinds of neat things besides the basics, I have things like shoes, socks, hats... I get a lot of these things at races. I also have a bag full of dog toys, extra dog collars and leashes, shoelaces, etc.
I need to get some things for storage like hand lotion, sunblock, waterproof spray for clothing and shoes. A million things I could have in storage and I have been out of lotion for a week. Never have what you need it seems, but I keep trying.
I'm training my butt off for the upcoming spring trail running season. Last year I put in over 1500 miles and well over 400 hours (a lot more if I take driving into consideration), I'm a little OCD. I did my first run of the year on Sunday to help raise money for search and rescue and compared to last year I dropped almost 8 minutes off my time. Myy neighbor wanted to run 4 miles with me an did, 2 times now, not bad for only running off and on for 2 months. It takes us 1:06 to run those 4 miles, last night I ran them on my own at a blistering ice sliding around corners time of 34 minutes. On sore legs..
I picked up a pair of trail shoes at REI, not the kind I can run in (I tried once and sent them back, but they are great for regular shoes), these are very light and don't overheat on a hot day at work. I picked up 2 more pair since they were on sale and put them on a shelf downstairs so I have 3 pair of shoes sitting there. I read a lot about what kinds of things people have in preps, I try to keep things that I will use and would miss down the road. People have all kinds of neat things besides the basics, I have things like shoes, socks, hats... I get a lot of these things at races. I also have a bag full of dog toys, extra dog collars and leashes, shoelaces, etc.
I need to get some things for storage like hand lotion, sunblock, waterproof spray for clothing and shoes. A million things I could have in storage and I have been out of lotion for a week. Never have what you need it seems, but I keep trying.
Monday, January 2, 2012
Stay on track
It's resolution time. There isn't a better way to stay on track than to let everyone know what you decided to do/change for the New Year. I always try and pick a few things in my life that I want to improve on, or change completely. Picking things that are absurd or really difficult just means you are setting yourself up for failure, it's hard enough with little changes. Here are my 3;
No Starbucks: I like green tea and banana bread, so I hit up Starbucks a few times a week. It's about $160 a month that I can easily do at home for less than $20. This resolution is really "Don't spend any money at Starbucks", I won't pass up if I have a meeting there and someone else is paying. I'm hoping this will extend the whole year, the money I save will go into my vacation fund.
Moab and Mexico: I haven't been to Moab in a couple of years, and the 4 wheeling there is waiting for me. I have a super busy summer with work, so I'm going to give this a good effort and hopefully get a week off at some point. Mexico I am going to bring the in-laws down when we go diving, have to rent a house, so I am saving more than usual for this trip.
Running: I want to run my first 50k (31 miles) race. This will be about 8.5 hours of running, I'm slow, but I am stubborn enough to cross the finish line. I have been tailoring my training towards this goal but the snow is holding me back a few weeks. Last year I ran over 1500 miles and spent over 400 hours doing it. I am not setting a mileage goal for the year, it's too easy to just run for this goal and not set myself up for a big race. This will also help me drop 10 pounds, or at least convert it into lean muscle.
Supplies: I'm doing a great job with being prepared; my food and water storage can keep me going for a long time, I have ways to cook with propane and solar, I can heat with propane as well. My resolution for this year is to add more propane tanks into storage and get a couple of solar panels so I can charge my marine batteries.
Now it's time to take 4 training modules at work, out of 35, switching over to a new software platform is going to take some energy over the next 30 days. Happy New Year.
No Starbucks: I like green tea and banana bread, so I hit up Starbucks a few times a week. It's about $160 a month that I can easily do at home for less than $20. This resolution is really "Don't spend any money at Starbucks", I won't pass up if I have a meeting there and someone else is paying. I'm hoping this will extend the whole year, the money I save will go into my vacation fund.
Moab and Mexico: I haven't been to Moab in a couple of years, and the 4 wheeling there is waiting for me. I have a super busy summer with work, so I'm going to give this a good effort and hopefully get a week off at some point. Mexico I am going to bring the in-laws down when we go diving, have to rent a house, so I am saving more than usual for this trip.
Running: I want to run my first 50k (31 miles) race. This will be about 8.5 hours of running, I'm slow, but I am stubborn enough to cross the finish line. I have been tailoring my training towards this goal but the snow is holding me back a few weeks. Last year I ran over 1500 miles and spent over 400 hours doing it. I am not setting a mileage goal for the year, it's too easy to just run for this goal and not set myself up for a big race. This will also help me drop 10 pounds, or at least convert it into lean muscle.
Supplies: I'm doing a great job with being prepared; my food and water storage can keep me going for a long time, I have ways to cook with propane and solar, I can heat with propane as well. My resolution for this year is to add more propane tanks into storage and get a couple of solar panels so I can charge my marine batteries.
Now it's time to take 4 training modules at work, out of 35, switching over to a new software platform is going to take some energy over the next 30 days. Happy New Year.
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