My astute reader will note that I haven’t posted for a while. Fact is, I’m burnt out. An emotional cinder. Extra crispy. Too many irons in the fire. Too many candles burning at both ends. Too much heat, not enough light. So today I decided to hit the reset button. I purged all the items…
I’ve been conducting a little experiment for the past couple of months – reading the Bible as if I was having a direct conversation with God. For instance, I’ll ask a question and then see if my daily Bible reading has the answer. Now I’m sure some of you may consider this to be like…
In the first week one May, 3-year-old Joshua Childers decided to go on a hike. His adventure lasted three days and two nights through a heavy rain and in 40 degree temperature in Missouri’s Mark Twain forest, 53 hours in all. When he was found by search teams what he wanted most was a glass…
As I’ve said before, I can’t remember how to tie a knot to save my life. Maybe that’s why I don’t get invited to necktie parties. Here’s a great tip from Make Magazine’s blog: wallet-sized knot tying reference cards to help you remember whether the rabbit goes over the fence or down the hole. Another…
California’s dire budget crisis has left vacationers with the very real fear that up to 220 California State Parks could be closed by the end of the season this September. Right now there’s no telling whether this is a political power play on the part of Governor Schwarzenegger, or how many parks would actually be…
Witch hazel is something you may have seen in your mother’s medicine chest, but she probably didn’t tell you why she was using it. Consequently you may not have discovered the extract’s many magical properties. Fact is, witch hazel is good for a lot of things, some that you can talk about in mixed company…
Fitz Cahall of the most excellent Dirtbag Diaries, has a most excellent side project blog in connection with Steve Bohrer and Danny Maynor. Three dads working together to “keep the Stoke” through that long season we call parenthood. The Outdoor Parent is a different kind of blog…one that doesn’t tell you how to keep your…
Sespe Creek snakes through the heart of the Los Padres forest like a coronary artery. It starts below Oak Springs, south of Ventucopa and flows east until it smacks into the foot of the Hopper Mountain bioregion, finally emptying into the Santa Clara River after a 55 mile journey. Last weekend, while the rest of…
BMW Scissors GPS Drawing from Max Rider on Vimeo. Gotta say that running a sometimes-used section of rail line is a hella-high-risk way to draw a picture on a map. Via NaviGadget
Don’t try this at home kids! It appears that with spray of flammable liquid (starter fluid, carb cleaner, brake cleaner) you can reseat a bead and inflate an off-road tire that rolled off the rim in a matter of seconds. Of course, it helps if you know hhow much flammable liquid to put in the…
Sooner or later it could happen to you. Might be in the backwoods of the Sespe. Might happen between the aisles at Trader Joe’s. Either way, it’s a good idea to brush up on your Cougar avoidance techniques. A study from UC Davis examining 185 cougar attacks from 1890 on, seems to suggest that the…
SPOT Personal Satellite Tracker This morning I noticed this odd arrangment I’d made on my desk. One is designed to prevent you from dying alone in the desert. The other advocates it.
Here’s the thing about suburban frontiers…too close to the suburbs. There’s some good to that. You can live and work close to nature. Problem is too many people don’t clean up after themselves. Real Cheap Sports in Ventura is sponsoring a clean-up day at Lizard’s Mouth, as I mentioned earlier a great local spot for…
Last week, riding home from work, I used a little more rear brake than usual and it felt “crunchy.” The BMW R1200GS has integral brakes, meaning that when you engage the front brake you automatically engage the rear brake as well. I tend to be light on the brakes in general, using them mostly to…
A couple of months ago I decided to read the Bible differently than before. I’ve always tried to wrestle Knowledge or Truth from the Holy Scripture. Sometimes it works. Sometimes not so much. This time around I’m trying to read more as if I’m having a conversation with God. It’s a subtle difference. But an…
