No, I didn’t watch last night’s “debate.” What would’ve been the point?
If you chose to waste your time on it — like Trump did — that’s between you and your god.
I believe it was Werner Erhard, speaking about what esties call “overwhelm,” who said, “All you have to do today is what you actually do today.” (I’ll give you a moment to go back and read that again.) I recall that aphorism whenever I catch myself in a death match with my to-do list.
I make peace with what I do accomplish. I avoid the trap of obsessing about everything I didn’t do. I focus on what is, rather than what isn’t yet or isn’t anymore.
Everyday Life competes with the cabin for my attention. Ordinarily I’m pretty good at balancing the two. When something slips, as it inevitably will, I don’t worry about it (much). It’ll still be there when the sun comes up the next day.
Today’s catch-up exercise began with taking our generators for their monthly run, almost two weeks after the reminder popped up on my phone. We’re on the grid, sure, but generated power remains an important part of our preps.
I was quickly reminded why it’s wise to stay on top of this stuff. The Predator 5000 took much longer than usual to fire, though it ran just fine once it started. Our Firman 3300, running for only the second time ever, refused to even catch. It made no sense.
When all else fails, RTFM.
Turns out the choke is electronic and requires the battery to have enough juice to energize the control circuitry (even for recoil start). And the battery is deader than dead. I knew that.
I plugged in the supplied charger, which put power to the circuitry and let me pull-start the engine. After the Firman had finished exercising, I pulled the battery and threw a trickle-charger on it. Honestly, I don’t hold out much hope for it.
A new 12V/5Ah battery costs 20 bucks.
Before moving on from the generators, I checked one other box. The weather shelter we use for the Predator 5000 is a salvaged wooden frame that once held a high-performance “crate motor” Deb’s cousin installed in a project vehicle. I covered it with material cut from a Harbor Freight (camo) tarp, and that keeps rain and snow off the Predator when we aren’t using it.
Over a year exposed to the elements had destroyed the tarp fabric on the roof of the crate. I had plenty of other (camo) tarps I could’ve cannibalized but used a contractors trash bag instead.
And then I did laundry.
There’s absolutely no way that Deb would let me throw my shop towels in with our clothes and bedding, and we’re not gonna pay for a separate washer and dryer to do them at the laundromat. So today I washed ’em by hand.
I knocked out dozens of other small chores over the course of six or so hours, stuff that had fallen through the cracks the last few weeks. And while the results won’t look as cool as the woodstove in the cabin, all were things that needed to be done.
Balance.
Deb’s sunrise view as she rolled off The Mountain this morning.
Take care of yourselves, Patriots. Stay calm. Stay sharp. Stay free.
#WiseUp #LibertyOrDeath #Ungovernable
#LetsGoBrandon #FJB