The landing.

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It does look like I am coming in for a smooth landing. Back on terrible firm, out of the mists of Avalon or spiritual, mental, or whatever Shangri-La, is not always a happy thing but being away is not a happy thing either, always. I just happened to have the time, with little else needing to be done, so the world was not shouting and pushing and poking at me. It IS a nice place to visit, though I wish I could make reservations rather than just be relocated without consent. That is what is frustrating, and initially suicide inducing. You cannot run the race, let alone place, if you do not have feet!

I went shopping tonight. I had run out of... well, everything. I think I have been out for a while. I had thawed three ribeyes, and last night, I ate them all, plus a trip to McDonalds or some other place. I simply cannot remember. All I am sure about is that I was hungry beyond speaking, and the Sunday dinner reminded me that there is something called food. I thought, with my lack of activity and my consumption last night, especially since I had no ensuing b.m., that I would weigh a ton today. Cautiously and worried, I stepped up on the scale. I am 275. My weight fluctuates a bit. Last time I weighed, I was 283.5. In a less than two weeks, doing nothing, I have lost 8.5 pounds, and that after stuffing my face with... 5 pounds of food last night. Which means I have not been eating, or drinking, probably. Yes, I have been out there, getting a Zen tan.

I purchased a number of things that have been on my list, besides food. An ear thermometer, so I can track fevers better and more accurately. Both Aspirin (with caffeine) for fevers and pain, and Tylenol for when only pain exists, hydrogen peroxide (good for minor cuts and scrapes, but wonderful for ears (and lots of other stuff I do not yet use it for)), more combs, and a headset I am hoping will allow me to hear better on this little computer. The new headsets may not help at all, it may be that this machine simply has a poor audio board or system.

Oh, I also picked up an 8 quart stockpot with a steamer mini-basket and a deep pasta basket. I could have looked for my good gear (though this suits my high standards, actually), but I would have had to dig through mountains of boxes, and I think the smallest I have is my 16 quart Al-Clad stockpot (with the same set up as this one). This one even has the triply base. I would like to have pasta occasionally, and beans and rice. I simply miss the pasta, if I have to have that as only a weekly meal due to the carbs. But spaghetti and meat sauce, tuna casserole (which I never put in the oven, ptuhhey), or even simple macaroni and cheese (if I do cheat and add fancy spices and use whole whipping cream for that creamy edge), I need and love pasta. Beans and rice are something D.C.'s efforts keep leading me toward, and they are something I natively enjoy as well. And, to that end, I bought a pound of each. Soaking dry beans makes the best beans out there. And rice completes the protein (or so they say, I think it is a bit skimpy that way, so add cheese often). Beyond buying the little ones, I bought my first larger items. I purchased a 20 pound bag of (long grain white) rice, and an 8 pound bag of pinto beans. Next I will probably need to begin buying buckets.

To be honest, this first purchase is more of a short term thing. I want to see how to parse this out, how well it keeps while I attempt to use it, and how much one can reasonably eat before beanearitis breaks out. I am truly curious how long and well a bag of beans and rice will last and how creative I can get with it. Oh, I will be trying many things. I would guess that canned meats, with this, would be a real winner. If too, we are going to have to radically change our taste in food. I think people would be surprised how simply and cheaply they can really live, and mostly happily. But, then, that is not how we are built. That is not just us, either. From the amoeba to the fly to the mouse to us, we all try to get the maximum gain for minimum effort. That we have gotten to the point where the poor are fat and the rich are thin is just a measure of the grotesquely absurd filthy richness (which, generally, I approve within some constraints) we enjoy in America. Never let them tell you they can fix, and if they tell you it needs fixing, shove them into the ground and drive them into it with road pavers. What they are saying is, "Hey, these guys are really rich, how much do you think they will let us steal from them, offering them nothing, often less?".

Now, if you think we are evil for being successful, move your ass to Africa. That is about the only continent that is poor, and seems to want to remain so, actually. Well, some of them. Though it does seem if someone goes there, works hard, and begins to make a living, they are driven out and everything they have is stolen, or they are raped and murdered, and often bits of both. However, if you are murdered there for your money, your guilt will be expunged and I will not have to worry about you creating the same thing here. Europe is attempting to bring a mix of Hitler and Stalin back, thinking the bureaucracy will save them from both the excesses of a dictator, the poverty of socialism, and war while preventing an actual dictator from moving in. They simply do not seem to understand that an overweening bureaucracy is the best of all stepping stones for such. They have or are destroying their economies to the point someone will simply HAVE to step in. Ha, what a lark. This has been their plan since before the WWII American dead were all buried. It was probably in their collective little psyches before Berlin fell. Heck, was that not their intentions in WWI, and even earlier? No stopping lemmings when they get their little peckers in play I guess. At least Japan seemed to have learned, so far. Though I really think if they could shed socialism and feminism, they might be in for a stunning future.

Oh, right. Rambling again. I have not quite landed. Maybe tomorrow. I have two or three tasks, one of which is to help my neighbor move into his own place! I am so pleased for him. And, it is right where he had hoped it would be, right near the stores he shops and across the way from the main local bus hub. They have moved all his other goods, but want me to help with the couch and bed. I wish they would have called me, but there is not a lot of stuff to be honest. Or at least, not a lot of heavy stuff. Now that he is on his own, I will have to go bug him a couple a three times a week. Once he gets moved in, I will make sure to get him to the store this first time. Otherwise he might pull a zen himself. He is simply too thin to be doing that, and physically ill to boot. No no, he will have food if I have to buy it. We might even go shooting, if he is not too done in. He replaced some parts in his pistol and wants to take it for a test run. I need to get out and do some target practice anyway too. And I had best call and see if I can reschedule a shoot for my hunter safety certificate.

I also need to get back in touch with the local LEO and get going on the gun thing. I did not so much let that slide as simply drifted off. I really want to get my CFP (ccw), both for carry (in many states) and for ease of firearm purchase (otherwise, even when you can make a purchase, it costs $7.50 every time, to the state, for a background check). I have about 3 guns on my list. Of course, I am rather frustrated with that, too, at this time. A .308 has been a long time goal, but it is a bit of a light load for going into bear country, brown bear anyway. Since I can reload, with some powder in storage in a safe box, and the reloading consumables beside that in storage, I am good with something like the .338 Marlin (and probably no more expensive than a .308, if I could probably trade beans or junk silver for .308 almost anywhere I might go but not for .338 Marlin). I will probably end up with both (though I want a .308 which can handle the higher pressures of the 7.62x51 NATO round for sure). Some rifles can take either, and the higher pressure of the NATO round, though not even close to all of them. I think the .338 will be first though, since that will be my primary and preferred hunting rifle (well beyond a mere bush gun though it carries like one, it has a point blank range out to 250 yards) and a very fast repeat shot, only beat by autos, which are often a bit heavy and clumsy in the field comparatively).

Doh! I kept on rambling. Time to take a breather.

Good night.