Introducing Captain...back to Utah

Captain and I returned from Socorro on Sunday to find the house buried in several feet of snow.  Thanks to a debilitating condition I would rather not discuss (brought on by too much road food and too much time in the car) I was hardly up to the task of clearing the 30 feet of compacted snow and ice from road to driveway.  I did try, until I realized the next shovel full of snow would likely wreck my back as well.

Plan B was much simpler:  I locked the hubs on the F250 in our second driveway, threw it into 4x4, blasted out of the drift (think Steve Martin and John Candy in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles with Captain playing the role of Dell Griffith) and then drove over the snow in the driveway behind the truck to flatten in.  I beached the car and walked from there.  

But today, I have triumph.  It only took three days, but as I slopped the last heave of ice out of the way, I held the shovel above my head and howled "I have done it!!!!".  This had the added benefit of scaring away the two college punks looking at the rental house across the street.

But Captain is the real star.  He stood by me watching the street, rolling in and biting at the snow, and generally being a good dog.  I think he'll like it here.  

Later:

I just realized: I was playing the role of Dell Griffith, since I was driving.  I didn't want you to get the idea I let Captain pilot the truck.  I'm also sure I said "we need to rock it a bit."

Always listen to your spouse

When she says get a pup, get a pup!!

Radio astronomer communicates with another lifeform

A novel use of the VLA: Search for Canine Intelligence.

Cassie, The Best Dog Ever, 1997 - 2008

Our dear friend Cassie succumbed to canine lymphoma over Thanksgiving.  I am thankful that SG was here with us, and that Cassie went quickly.  She was a dignified pooch, and it is such a blessing that she did not suffer. 

Cassie, I will miss you more than I can say.  You have been an integral part of our lives for the past 10 years, and you have helped remind us of life's most important things: eat fresh bread every day (if you can get it off the counter), chase your dreams (even if they smell like skunk) and remember that "or" is a dirty word.  Thank you for being our best friend, and the Best Dog Ever.

New Rig: Update

I just got back from our maiden voyage to the grocery store, and what a smooth ride!  The trailer, no surprise, actually stabilizes the bike.  The drag does make the average speed of the bike about 30% less, but there is no noticeable increase in effort.  Again, even up hills, you just go slower, but it doesn't require much extra work, even under load.  The first trip included the following prioritized list of supplies:

1 six pack of beer

2 boxes of doggie snacks

1 lb butter

1 qt yogurt

1 pack cream cheese (for secret special thanksgiving breakfast)

1 can black beans

1 bottle laundry soap

1 bottle dish soap

1 bag fruit and nut granola

1 jar of chili garlic sauce (Sambal)

6 rolls of toilet paper

1 large bottle of olive oil

1 large bottle of balsamic vinegar 

1 small bag of jelly bellies

5 apples

2 lemons

2 limes

1 bunch green onions

1 red pepper

1 green pepper

1 bag of mushrooms

1 new hardback book (Stephen King short stories)

Not a bad haul for a guy on a bike!  

My new "rig"

There are a lot of gear rigs:

SG and I have a Ford F250 pulling a three-horse with tack and dressing room rig. 

Cassie has a six-foot leather quick-release leash and collar rig.

Larry and the "Daryls" have dual quick-fill, auto-release water dispensers and tempered metal feeding rig.

I am currently rockin"g" my Fender Strat with 10 W practice amp rig (everyone starts someplace). 

HARBOR has a Kenwood TM-D710 ham radio with 1/4 wave antenna and portable power supply rig for tracking the high altitude balloon in the field.

My blogging rig is a MacBook Air and iPhone.

But this, my friends, is my new rig: A Burley Nomad cargo trailer for my bike that can haul 100 lbs!  While I have been going the grocery store on my bike with saddle bags or hauling stuff by bus, now I am ready to do the big pre-T-day shopping trip...on my bike!  20 lbs of potatoes?  No problem.  Case of beer?  We can handle it, as long as we let it settle a bit before we drink it.

I'll post some pictures of it actually set up in a bit.  In the mean time, I have some details to work out.  It says it can haul 100 lbs, but I can't find a motor anywhere on the trailer.  Hmmmm.  Maybe that is sold separately?

FAIL!

I both won and lost at court today. I lost because the judge ruled I was in breach of contract. I won because he "felt my pain" and effectively deducted late fees and court costs from the plaintiff's case. The moral: submit all grievances in writing!

A scary detail: Nearly all of the other cases were "Money Lending Co." vs. "Person". The unseen costs of payday lending.

The only disappointment was when the bailiff came over and told the cub scouts it would be "less boring" in traffic court. Cub scouts have all the fun! I read over one scout's shoulder the following notes:

"Judge got mad 'cos someone didn't show up"

You will have more fun in traffic court!

Piaffe?!

This link from Wikipedia is obviously not me (or my horse) but the animation is a Piaffe, where the horse performs a collected trot pretty much in place.

I rode Music Man yesterday...and he knows how to do this!  Frankly, it was the most exillerating experience I've had on a horse since riding cross country eight years ago.  What fun!

Now I can start focusing on my position, since Music Man apparently can handle himself.

Thanks again to SG, Trish, and Gail for convincing me to ride him.  What a great experience!

You heard is here first

With 99% reporting, McCain lead Utah with only 63% of the vote.  Hot damn!  In this state, that is a landslide victory for Democrats!

MCCAIN Calls to Concede the Election

BOYA!  Finally, my America is back!

I am going to bed!

More calls...

I called another 100+ people yesterday in the Colorado GOTV campaign for Obama.  

(By the way, I've been feeling a little guilty about this, since I don't actually live in Colorado.  But I was raised in Colorado, so I feel I have a vested interest in the outcome of the presidential election.  And, since I live in Utah, this might be my only way to be heard!)

Calling all these folks on a Saturday resulted in some interesting observations:

1. Most people aren't home.  I suppose people are working, or shopping, or whatever.  But it still seems strange.  I don't see anyone on my street at 10 am on a Saturday, so I figure they are in their houses.  90% of them aren't.  Where is everyone?

2. I have a lot of preconceived notions of age and gender when it comes to politics.  I knew Megan, 23, would be friendly (she hung up on me); if I was calling Frank, 66, I would be hoping for an answering machine, because middle aged men tend to be pretty rude to strangers calling on the phone (Frank turned out to be the nicest person I talked to); Delmar, 93, would be an ardent McCain supporter (100% artist for Obama).

3. I hate myself for ever being unfriendly to someone on the telephone.  In this age of caller ID, everyone I talked to knew immediately that I wasn't a friend or family member.  Everyone started out suspicious.  In general, that feeling grew to impatience or anger.  Moral of the story: There is no reason to be rude to people.  Ever.  

(I have a pet theory that everyone thinks they are living in their own private sitcom.  When Jerry Seinfeld is rude to someone on the phone, it's funny, right?)

4. Our elderly need help.  Of all the 80 and older crowd, only one had help with getting to the polls.  One woman, 95 and blind, had already tried to vote by mail 5 times (!) but kept filling out the form incorrectly.  She was about to give up.  One woman told me "We're shut-ins, and we aren't interested in politics".

I hope all this calling helps, because I am starting to realize that the independent America we've built is a myth.  In the end, we are all going to need some help.

Music Man

I was trying to be logical and rational.  Really, I was.  

My horse, Kody, came up lame and found a new job as a trail horse.  I decided this would be a good time to take a hiatus from owning a horse.  I'd do some other things, maybe take lessons on SG's horse.

That was two days ago.  Today I rode Music Man. 

So much for reason.  I've decided to lease him.

I've been depressed and cranky for the last several weeks while finding a new home for Kody, and today...well, today I'm happy.  Happy knowing a good horse has a good home.  Happy to look forward to learning a lot from a school master.  In general, just happy to have a horse again.

Who knew it was that easy?

Could Utah go for Obama?

I don't believe it.  I spent three hours today calling people in Colorado, reminding them to send in their mail-in ballots and get the vote out for Obama.  Today, I log into the web site and find I have 50 more voters to contact....IN UTAH!

Yes, the Obama campaign is actually asking me to call registered voters in Utah.  I know (from data collected in a previous post) that McCain is polling in the low 60's, but could it be possible that Obama could take Utah?  I am sure he will make the best showing for a democratic candidate this state has seen for a very long time. 

But maybe the unthinkable could actually happen?  I'm going to start calling!

Armstrong's law

Last night I saw a news cast about McCain's "Robocalls" and the fact that Obama pals around with terrorists.  Given the horror of 9/11, and what the word "terrorist" conjures up in the post 9/11 world, you think people would have a little more perspective.

Have you ever heard of Godwin's Law?  You know, when you are arguing with someone, and they say something like "that's how it started with the Nazi's"...they instantly lose the argument.  That's Godwin's law.

Armstrong's law is the same, but with terrorists.  As soon as you say "Barack Obama pals around with terrorists" (he is a U.S. Senator for the love of Christ!) .... you lose.  Let's hope Armstrong's law plays out during the presidential election.

To make sure, this year I am up off my ass, making personal calls to people in Colorado on Obama's behalf. I have never, ever considered doing this before. I really care this time, because it really matters this time.  I may live in Utah where my vote doesn't matter, but this is still my country and my home!

SG reminded me what makes Obama so appealing, summed up by this quote from Taylor Mali:

"So don’t waste my time and your curses on verses
about what you are against, despise, and abhor.
Tell me what inspires you, what fulfills and fires you,
put your precious pen to paper and tell me what you’re for!"

Obama is telling me what we can do to make this my country again, the one I learned about in grade school.  The one that has always made me proud to be an American.  He can help us get there.

Harvest Time!

I was about to post something about the severe weather in Utah, and then SG tells me she is hiding from tornados.  So, nevermind.

What I will tell you about is....RADISHES!

Look at that photo.  I planted those about 4-5 weeks ago, mostly in vermiculite.  Suddenly, you know where food comes from...the air!  Crazy, but true!

I've also been feeding the little pumpkins to the chickies.  Their little minds are blown.  In fact, I think I know what I'll do with all the squash.

SuperDell for Governer

The Utah Voter Guide came out this week.  I love looking through this, because it puts to rest the old lie that America is trapped in a two-party system.  There are plenty of parties out there.  Don't like McCain?  Don't trust Obama?  You've got choices.  And, did you know the Green Party actually trumps republicans and Sarah Palin, with a woman running for president and vice president?

Of course, my favorite is Dell "SuperDell" Schanze, running for Governor of Utah.  Why is he my choice for Governor?  Just listen to his own words:

"There is no question that Dell Schanze is different.  There are only three people on the ballot and SUPERDELL is the only one that is NOT a socialist.  If you are unsure then fill your heart with love, completely open your mind and pray to God earnestly.  You can't afford to get this wrong and will be held accountable for your choice."

What a campaign slogan: Vote for SuperDell or go to Hell!  You can't go wrong with that.

All quiet on the home front

A light frost killed off the squash and pumpkin plants last night.  The peppers and tomatoes are brown and drooping.  The cukes are starting to get a freeze-thaw line visible when you cut them open.  The drizzle is broken only by a few bold but rare snow flakes.  And I still don't have the coop insulated.

But the radishes!  They seem to relish the cold air, their green stalks bright, upright, exclaiming "Winter?  Bring it!"

Speaking of Bring It, I noticed at the IFA that Ariat (the dressage and show jumping boot maker) has diversified into cowboy boots.  Their ads, showing a handsome, buff, nearly shirtless cowboy, says simply "Ariat.  Bring It."  Made me laugh so hard that one of the sales women asked me if I was ok.  Those would be pretty effective ads for all the women buying dressage boots, too!

I tried to explain it to her, but I don't think she understood.  Oh well, I am sure they get crazy "city slicker" types in there all the time.  There is probably some store code for the customer who only buys 10 feet of chicken wire and one bale of straw hay.  I can hear the boys in the back now: "Looks like city boy's got himself a couple a chickens".  Sigh.

I usually don't mind sticking out in these situations.  Still, I made sure no one was looking when I check my iPhone for text messages on the way out.

Winter is coming (redux)

I can always tell when it's winter time.  Our long-haired pup starts sneaking into the bed again after I get up in the morning.  When I got up today, the house was at 60 degrees.  This weekend, the high (the high) will be 45.  Cassie is going to be in the bed this weekend I can tell you.

I'd better get the chicken coop insulated!

Ira Glass is amazing

I don't know how he does it.  It is pledge drive week on NPR, and I can generally resist their pleas for contributions.  I always contribute, but I have to wait until Ira Glass (of This American Life) asks me.  In just the right way.

This year, he calls up an NPR junky who has never contributed, and totally puts him on the spot.  The NPR listener is saying "Oh my god, I am being called by Ira Glass!" and Ira says "Yeah, chump, put up the cash!".

So I do (even though Ira doesn't call me!).  But, consider, $250/12 ~ $21 per month.  And I give Comcast (the demon company) $60+.  Score one for NPR.

Chicken Math

I got two more eggs today, adding to the one yesterday.  We have three chickens, so in principle we should get three eggs per day. But we don't.  Sometimes we get one, sometimes two, sometimes three.  I've been trying to figure out how many eggs each hen is laying, and I haven't come up with anything conclusive.  But I have some ideas:

1. Each hens lays every other day. So that would mean:

• Day 1 - one egg (say Larry)
  
• Day 2 - one egg (say Daryl 1)
  
• Day 3 - two eggs (Larry and Daryl 2)
  
• Day 4 - one egg (Daryl 1)
  
• Day 5 - two eggs (Larry and Daryl 2)
  
• ...etc...

2. Primes.  I think each hen may be laying on days evenly divisible by a small prime number.  For example, Larry lays every day, Daryl 1 every 2nd day, and Daryl 2 every 3rd day.  That would give me 1 egg each day plus an extra egg on even days, plus an extra egg every third day.  Our hens know prime numbers?  Where is Carl Sagan?

3. Fibonacci Numbers.  This is my new theory.  I get one egg, one egg, two eggs, three eggs, then back to one egg.  So I am getting a cycle of the first four numbers in the Fibonacci sequence.  This rocks my world, because that means my chickens know the Fibonacci numbers.  Weird!

4. Pi.  I'm serious.  Look at this:  with three chickens, I get one egg (one plus three is 4) then I get one egg, and one plus four is five.  Add up all the numbers greater than one not including three and you get nine: 3.14159.  Weird!

Until I get three per day, I'll keep up on this.  Stay tuned!

Conference Weekend

It is conference weekend for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints here in Utah, and I found this flyer in the road.  I thought this was pretty cool, and completely destroyed my stereotypes of what the LDS majority do on conference weekend.  On the back it claimed "Over 5,000 singles!" which I assume are single people?  So maybe this is a place where you can meet people?  Anyway, there was a special floor for the 30-45 year olds, which I thought was good planning.

My favorite part is the translation of XXIX.  Maybe they are getting ready for next year, Conference Dance XXX. 

Yep, this is better

I was getting tired of the rain.  A little hail (and possibly some snow) is a nice change, especially when the chicken coop is flooding.  Ah, October in the Mountain West.

It really is a glorious day today.  I spent most of it outside clearing land for Larry and the Daryls.  That and my cucumber sandwich made it feel very 1929.  Oh, and the collapsing economy added some authenticity.

Now hail.  I am waiting to see one of our neighbors drive by with their grandma strapped to the top of their SUV in a rocking chair.  For 2008: Lattes of Wrath, or something like that.

Who needs salami?

We've been working pretty hard to cut our meat consumption for a lot of good reasons.  First, it is better for our health.  Second, it is better for the environment.  Third, most large scale meat companies are simply evil in their treatment of animals.  And this is coming from a guy who has every intention of stewing up Larry and the Daryls if they stop making those delectable eggs.  But I guarantee when their time comes, they'll go quick, with dignity and very little pain.

But I have this thing about salami.  In fact, I love just about any salted, cured meat.  I had gotten down to just eating a few slices on my sandwiches, and figured I had traveled about as far as I was willing to go on this meatless adventure.

And then I discovered the fresh cucumber sandwich.  Oh my god, what a delicious creation.  Even a simple one, of just cucumbers and cheese, on some good crusty bread.  Mmmmmm.  I went the store yesterday, and passed the salami right by.  As long as I have fresh cucumbers from the garden, I may be done with the salted meats.

Of course, I should try one with just the cheese and mayo.  Maybe that's the real secret.

Tent city springs up in Ogden chicken coop

As perhaps more evidence of these trying economic times, Larry and the Daryls have erected a "tent city" to shelter them from the coming winter.

Atop dry straw and under blue tarps, the birds huddle close to stay warm during the worst weather Ogden has seen for several hours. When asked about her future plans, Daryl said "Ba-gock!"

Swamp 2

Here is a photo of our Chicken Soup. Notice the ubiquitous "blue tarp" (for more applications, read The Blue Tarp Bible).  I am not sure where I expected the water to go in the completely enclosed concrete foundation of the old shed, but it so seldom rains 'round these parts that I didn't give it much thought.  I now have a little more sympathy for the ranchers and farm owners we have boarded horses with the in past.  They had mucky messes, too. But when it costs $25,000 to re-grade your driveway, I guess you put up with it for two months out of the year.

As I recall, in Seattle, this never happened.  I think it's because people would have to put up with it 11.5 months of the year.

I am now re-engineering the chicken situation (read: clearing some ground with good drainage and moving the whole shebang over about 20 feet.  I may have to call on Zeroth Draft to help me move the coop, so I hope he has some muck boots.  I'll bribe him with martinis.

Swamp!

I'll get a photo up soon, but we neglected to account for drainage in the placement of the new chicken coop.  After two days of rain, we have nice cold chicken soup.  Luckily, the chickens have dry places and their interior coop is dry, for now. 

I did find the all-in-one, delivered "ready to use" coop pictured here.  The Hen Chalet.  I'll let sabbatical grrrl decide if Larry and the Daryls are worth it.  It is only $2000 (including shipping!).  But there is no second floor ;)

What the heck was that!?!

I am pretty sure there wasn't an Alien(TM) outside the bedroom window last night. Around 1 am, I heard this nasty snarling noise in the tree right outside the window. Cassie and I got up to check it out. Ok, I stood outside in my jammies with a big walking stick and went "what the heck was that" while cassie stared at me. Eventually, I did go back to a suspiciously dreamless sleep.

This morning, I went to check on the chickens (they're fine) and looked under the tree for any evidence of what I will refer to as "the creature". I saw nothing...no hair, no tracks, no acid burns on the ground.

Still, if I get a stomach ache in the next 24-48 hours, I'll let everyone know.

Winter is coming...

...and may already be here in the "Top O' Utah".

This is another otherness of another Utah. Winter comes early in the top part of Utah. This area, north of Salt Lake, is neither long enough (e.g. Oklahoma) or grand enough (e.g. Texas) to be called a "Pan Handle". It's too blocky to be called a "mitten" or a "thumb" as one might do in Michigan. For a while I thought about calling it the "Top Hat" of Utah, but the locals have already settled on the "Top of Utah". Like "Top O' the Utah" to ya!

Today, I can watch winter roll out to meet us. Out the back bay window I don't see what I know to be Mt. Ogden. I do see the flaming tips of the box elders on Strong's Peak, as Fall sneaks down to the lower elevations. The chickens huddle in a heap in the corner of the coop. Cassie is the "winter pup", hair shaggy and long after her summer shave. The garden yellowing despite the water and the grass greening again because of it.

Today, if I can tear myself away from the approach of winter, I plan to mow the grass hay that grows behind the back fence.

Letters to the editor

A snippet from today's Standard Examiner Letters to the Editor:

"Are we finally ready for a smart president?" - To summarize: are you going to pick two educated individuals, one of whom graduated at the top of his Harvard class, or two other "folks", one who graduated 894th out of 899 at the Naval Academy, and another who attended six colleges in five years before earning her degree? I have to agree with the author on this one. I am tired of a "C's get degrees" president.

And this is coming from a university professor who attended four colleges in 13 years before getting his terminal degree. But I don't want someone like me for president. My president should be *better* than me.

Out of four political letters in the Standard today, four are either for Obama/Democrats or against McCain/Republicans. Wow. In Utah. Another Utah.

I have the silly fantasy that Utah goes for Obama this year. It's crazy talk. But consider: in 2004, Bush took Utah with 71.5% of the popular vote. Considering Utah's nearly fanatical approval ratings for this president, that's a pretty poor showing. Given McCain's standing among conservatives (as well as the fact that he is not Mitt Romney) I wouldn't be surprised if McCain squeaked out a win in Utah with only 65% of the popular vote.

That's a close call here in the flyover.