Ted’s essays

when low is high

I do not take it seriously … certainly when compared to those for whom Practical Pistol is LIFE. It is a great sport. It has wonderfully useful real-world application. And I do admire those folks who can SMOKE the course. A handgun you do not practice shooting is not much better than a pocket full of stones you don’t practice throwing. If you expect your pistol to be useful in a dire self-defense scenario, you dang-well better shoot it often enough to KNOW you can hit what you want to hit with it, and not hit what you want to not hit with it. It is fun. It is a great skill set to have in your quiver. But I […]

Ted’s awesome meat loaf recipe

I combined a few recipes, added a dash of improv and made a lovely meat loaf today. I wrote it out tonight so I could come close to repeating it another day. Of course the measurements are approximations and wild guesses, but I’m betting they are close to what I used. Ted’s Awesome Meat Loaf 3 tablespoons coconut oil 1 cup chopped onion ยฝ cup chopped green onions 2 chopped carrots 2 chopped stalks celery 2 tablespoons minced garlic 2 8-ounce cans tomato paste [homemade] 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce 4 tablespoons apple cider vinegar 1/2 teaspoon salt [Himalayan pink] 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper [fresh ground] 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (untested addition) ——– Stir fry the above ingredients, using only […]

mapping your neighborhood

Having the right resources in the right places is the essence of surviving and thriving. Disasters challenge that pleasant place. Proper planning includes mapping resources and features that may be useful to your community in emergencies. Also valuable is placing on that map any threats you know of, along with potential avenues for likely threats. Obviously, so you can plan to minimize their negative impacts on your community. This is a big topic that deserves thought, planning, organization from a handful of proactive, foresightful neighbors. While I can’t help you with that, I can point you to a couple of hugely valuable resources. Samuel Culper publishing in Forward Observer offers A Primer on Tactical Intelligence Collection that is a prize […]

the whole page

I know my loyal fans come to this website for my scintillating writing. But I want to point out that I do put some thought and effort into the links and information placed in the side columns. I just gave those a freshening up, and reorganization. They had not been given any attention for quite a while. There is some current prioritization of older links and reference information, along with some new and updates. I encourage you to take a little time to look around … and check out anything that strikes you as potentially interesting.

post card from Conner

Warm spring-like, rainy and sunny weather had made all but the drifts of snow disappear. Overnight last night that changed in a big way with about 4 inches of fresh, light, fluffy powder. Picture perfect opportunity not to be missed. Hey, what is all this stuff? Conner Cabin front yard (note bird in upper left) The Bitterroot Dwarf Penguin(American Dipper to some) Conner Cabin back side Conner riverside trailhead The Honeymoon Cabin […]

certified olive oil

I am proud that I do not unquestioningly accept pronouncements from OFFICIALS. But the University of California, Davis olive oil story broadcast all over the lamestream and Internet media sucked me in. I hate to admit I was faked out by the fake story on fake olive oil, ๐Ÿ™ but am happy to publish the other side. ๐Ÿ™‚ Once you read the information on the graphics below, you will distrust Davis too. The good news is that you can trust olive oil that carries the North America Olive Oil Association label. I received the following very polite e-mail about my republishing of the UC Davis story: ———– Hi Ted, I noticed your recent article on olive oil brands falsely […]

lap lab

GG and female #4. Pretty hard to not be happy around puppies. To touch these babies … finer than silk more precious than gold.

Bitterroot River morning

Just a pleasant diversion in a world that is not always this pretty. I recommend you turn your sound up a bit and put this on full screen for a minute.

warming up

After a few weeks of afternoon temperatures well above freezing, the ice is finally gone from our driveway and roads. That enabled me to get my bicycle out of the shed and take it for it’s first ride of the year. The tires had given up a little air over the winter. I didn’t even bother to refill. They weren’t low enough to cause any harm, just increase their rolling resistance. Said another way, I had to pedal harder and couldn’t go as fast as I would be able to were they properly inflated. No loss at all. The point was to spend TIME outside and to push the pedals for exercise. Neither distance traveled nor speed of travel were […]