monkeylizard

Here's the response I received about clothing donations from my pastor friend:

Now that I'm not sure about. I'll find out. and post back. I didn't see any nekkid people today.

Ya'll, I went over there today to help out. An old college friend pastors a church there now. I flooded in 2010 in Nashville. . . This is so much worse. Or maybe because I was so focused on my own house in 2010 that I didn't see the big picture then. Shoot....folks were cooking great lunches at the entrance to my neighborhood in 2010 and I didn't know about it until a month later. I was nothing but rear-end and elbows in my house from sunup to midnight for weeks. I know some people in Nashville had a lot of water flowing through their homes, but most of us experienced a slow rise and then fall. These people had a river dropped on them. Houses (real houses...not just mobile homes) lifted off the foundations and sent down the street before hitting something big enough to stop them. Masonry walls blown out the backside of homes and business and churches. Businesses the local community relies on for daily needs, wiped out. The cars stacked up, overturned, and rolled over. Independent local businesses, and thus livelihoods, destroyed alongside the homes of the people who run those businesses. It's hard to find someone who didn't know someone who lost their life in this mess. The whole town is incredibly heartbreaking. They have a crap-ton of supplies. We laughed that they'll have enough bottled water to refill the city swimming pool and enough Huggies for the next 3 generations. What they need is what people always need after disasters . . . people with strong backs willing to get dirty. If you have the ability and willingness to go, PM me and I can connect you with a local church there doing the dirty work. Note that at this point, the water in some of these houses has been standing for a week+ of 90F+ weather. Nasty stuff is starting to grow in the ones that haven't been gutted. Please wear your masks, gloves, and eye-protection inside any home. If you can stand a full Tyvek suit in this heat, it wouldn't be a bad idea. I don't know how much longer they'll be there, but nurses were giving Tetanus and Hepatitis A&B vaccines today at the Waverly First Baptist Church. Get the tetanus shot for sure if you haven't had one in the last 10 years. Hep A&B should only be needed for folks who had contact with flood waters, but sewage backed up into many of these homes so it may not be a bad idea either.

For almost everyone, bugging in is going to be better than bugging out. Even city-dwellers are usually going to be better off staying put. You know the area and have some semblance of a support structure through neighbors. Plus survival gear and all the crap you get stored up is hard to move and harder to defend on the move. That's not to say that the time to "git out" wouldn't come, but it probably shouldn't be most folk's first option. Remember that those hills and mountains everyone plans to run to already have people living there who likely won't take too kindly to a horde of newcomers. For bugging in plans - the best place to start is in your own home and pantry. Also start small. Don't try to plan for the end of the world if you can't get through 3 days without electricity. This is a gun forum, so I'll assume you have security covered. For food, the trick is to get a rotation going. Storing 500 cans of SPAM when you don't eat SPAM is just going to end up with 500 old cans of SPAM when disaster never strikes. Likewise 500 cans of hard red winter wheat from the local LDS cannery won't do you any good if you don't know how to prepare it. Instead look at what you actually eat, especially shelf-stable items like canned & jarred goods and pasta. Then start building up that supply. e.g. Instead of having 2 or 3 boxes of spaghetti on hand, maybe you get 10 or 20 to start with. As you use a few boxes, buy some to replace them and put the new ones at the back of the pile. A vacuum sealer (like FoodSaver) is also a good thing to get started with. You can buy some items in bulk like rice and divide it into smaller bags you seal up. That's a good place to start. Then you can start looking at the more extreme things like MREs, mylar bags with O2 absorbers, and those cans of hard red winter wheat. For non-food, think about what you'd need for an extended camping trip and start there. Proper clothing and footwear for everyone. Tools and skills to make a fire. A good first aid kit and knowledge of how to use it (you probably don't need an AED, but something more than Band-Aids is a good idea) Some emergency "space" blankets. Street and topography maps of the area, a compass, and knowing how to use them. Flashlights/headlamps and extra batteries. Maybe a solar charger for small electronics like one from GoalZero. A hand-cranked water filter or something like the Sawyer mini filters. A camp stove and fuel. Or if you have a propane grill, keep an extra tank on hand. An extra bag or two of charcoal. Do some thinking about bugging out too if the time comes. Ask questions like where would you go? Would you be welcomed there? How would you get there? Are there bridges or other features that make a funnel for thieves or worse? Can you avoid those points? Can you plan multiple routes? How much fuel do you need to make the journey? As for your questions: Canning: Yes, a pressure canner can be used for pretty much anything. A water bath process should only be used for high-acid foods like fruits and some veg but never for meat. Most (all?) the info in the Ball canning book is also on their website: https://www.freshpreserving.com/canning.html Hunting: TWRA Hunter ed site: https://www.tn.gov/twra/hunting/hunter-education.html Water: Water is going to be a challenge for most of us. Few people have the ability to store large quantities safely. Instead, look at what you need to get through a normal disruption for a few days or a week, then plan on a way to replenish the supply. Again, start small. I always have a few cases of bottled water on hand that we cycle through, plus I have a couple of Aquatainers for camping that I keep full year-round at the house. That's enough for just me and my wife for any normal disruption to service, plus we'll have the water heater and toilet tanks too for anything a little longer if we can't drive out to get more. For a true TEOTWAWKI, we'll have to make it up a bit as we go along. I'm a camper so I have water filtration and UV devices and there's a river 1/4 mile from the house. Schlepping water up from there won't be fun, but it's doable. A hand truck or wagon will help. If you can have a well dug, that's the best long-term supply. A pump can be solar powered or you can get a hand pump. Another option some people do a rain water catchment system using rain barrels or the big plastic cubes. This water MUST be filtered/treated. Generator: For sizing a generator you need to decide what you want to power with it, how long you want to run it, where you'll be running it, and what kind of fuel you want to store. Start with sizing. Kw Size: A small 2Kw generator is plenty for a few lights (esp. LED bulbs), a TV, computer, and a fridge. You'll need bigger if you plan to power your HVAC, microwave, electric stove, electric water heater, clothes dryer, etc. Look at the labels on each one and it will show you the power required. Add up all the ones you'd want to run AT THE SAME TIME and that's your requirement. Note that generators are sold with labels of their peak output, not running steady output. Physical size: Portability and storage should be considered. They'll range from ~25lbs and the size of a large cantaloupe for a 1Kw up to tractor-trailer-sized for the big industrial ones. I have a Honda EU6500 that's easy to wheel around the garage, but at 253 lbs. without fuel, it's a struggle for 2 capable men to put in a pickup truck if I have to take it anywhere. If I had it to do over (and I may still do it) I'd get a ~50 lb. 2Kw set like a Generac iQ or Honda EU2000 or EU2200 and maybe get a second one capable of being tethered together to do ~4Kw. Noise: May or may not be a concern for you. If you're on a 100 acre farm, you can worry about the noise less than if you're in a tightly packed neighborhood. Inverter generators are quieter and safer for sensitive electronics. Honda's EU series has been the gold standard for a very long time, but gennys from Yamaha and the new iQ line from Generac are every bit their equal at a lower cost. You'll find more support for Honda though because there are so many. Fuel: Gasoline is the easiest, especially on the smaller-sized gennys but it's harder to store a lot of it without it going bad. If you have natural gas or propane at your house, you can find tri-fuel gennys or conversion kits for the most popular brands like Honda. Propane and natural gas burn cleaner than gasoline so less maintenance/gummed up carbs, but they're also hotter and some gennys can't take it. You'll find lots of genny advice on RV forums. The big gennys usually run on diesel. I haven't seen any small home-owner grade ones running on diesel. Don't forget to have a heavy chain and good lock to secure it. Get some of those basics down, then you'll start thinking about longer term stuff like gardening, coordinating with nearby like-minded friends & neighbors, and communications (HAM radio is still a thing . . . It's kind of like hunting - no license needed if there ain't no government left ). Then you may or may not move on to the more dedicated prepper world like bunkers, hydroponics, aquaculture, etc. But that's only for kooks . . . . until it isn't. Something often overlooked in our consumer-driven world is skills vs. supplies. If King Monkeylizard the Great of Fortress Apocalypto has to choose between letting in an empty handed but skilled engineer or letting in a doofus with a truck load toilet paper, well....let's just say I'll have a good engineer and a lot of toilet paper. We like to think we can buy a bucket of food from Wise, stick it in the closet, and "hooray! we're safe from Zombies!". Think about the kinds of skills that would be useful and start trying to learn them, and use them as a way of life if possible. It doesn't have to be the end of mankind for those skills to payoff. Maybe learn to reload ammo. Canning is a good skill and you get to have healthier food for your family year round. Knowing how to wire up solar panels and batteries is useful and something you may be able to use on a mission trip or something. Make some new friends in the amateur radio world. Know how to repair a car. Medical skills are always useful.

Just a heads up if anyone in the area wants to take a look. Starts 8/27 at 8am. https://www.estatesales.net/TN/Burns/37029/2868591

No, you're not wrong. My house flooded in 2010 and it was a slow rise. We watched the water coming closer for hours and took that time to move stuff upstairs and the cars uphill. These folks had it come up into their homes in a matter of minutes. I plan to go down there Saturday and help out. I remember after 2010 that what we needed most were hands willing to work tearing out carpet, drywall, cabinets, insulation. These folks will have all of that to do plus the ruined possessions. If you do go help anyone out and are cutting out drywall, you need to cut out to where it gets dry and the insulation behind it is dry. That stuff wicks water up. For me, that was about 18" above the high water line. If that's less than 4' up from the floor, cut at the 4' mark. A sheet of drywall will go sideways into that space and save a lot of time later from trying to cut drywall boards into narrower strips.

More than 3 1/2 years ago. https://onthehill.tnjournal.net/nashville-talk-show-host-ralph-bristol-terminated/ From another site: https://www.mainstreet-nashville.com/community/main-street-mover-ralph-bristol/article_5bbdc1d4-8a93-11ea-b33f-93d592ed2fcf.html

You must have missed the first pic on Page 1 . . . cuz that rifle started out uglier than the last girl at the bar when the lights come on.

If by "worked" you mean 100% effective, then no. No vaccine is 100%. The polio vaccine is probably the best one ever made and it's only >99% and can have breakthrough cases. Tetanus and measles vaccines are around 96%. Flu shots some years are well under 50% if the manufacturers guess wrong about the common strains for the year. So far, I've been fortunate that I work from home 100% and my wife is a school teacher who was teaching virtually last school year and has been home all summer. We've both been low risk of getting it and low risk of complications (not elderly, healthy, no co-morbidity). I recognize and accept that's not no-risk. During the prior spikes, there have been very few cases in my area of the county, we don't do group activities right now, and we always shop in low-traffic hours (I don't go to Home Depot at 1:00p on Saturday) further decreasing our risk of getting it. But now that my wife is back at work and we're seeing more cases this time around in my corner of the world than in the last big spike, I'm moving much much closer to getting my jab. I'll likely do it this week now that Pfizer has full FDA approval. I can't say that Phil's death solely decided this, but it does weigh into the decision for sure, along with many other factors.

When you're one of 8 pretty young women led by one middle-aged balding man . . . you might be in a cult.

What part of "tort reform" sounded like "tort elimination"?

Add tort reform right behind them on that list. It seems like you can't go see a doctor without him/her ordering expensive CT, MRI, and blood tests to be sure they didn't misdiagnose fingernail cancer as a simple hangnail and get sued for malpractice.

https://www.wsmv.com/news/metro-pd-gunman-dead-3-injured-in-shooting-at-antioch-smile-direct-club/article_c738e438-f44c-11eb-bd05-073414734d3a.html?block_id=994460 3 victims, one in critical. Gunman shot and killed by Metro PD officers responding. Motive not yet being reported. As usual....the corporate dimwits released a statement "The safety of our team members is a top priority for our Company and we maintain strict security protocols and a no weapons policy at all of our facilities. We are working with the local police as they investigate this matter." (emphasis mine) To paraphrase Chris Tucker: Do you understand the words that are coming out of your mouth? Of course the news reader (erm....anchor) Brittany Weiner said at the end of the story this morning something like "It's hard to believe something like this could happen in our community." Do you watch your own newscasts? Ya'll cover shootings EVERY DAY and it feels like Nashville has workplace/random stuff at least once a year.

This one's lighter with some of the metal and wood cut away. Problem solved!

We were all very excited about this: https://comicbook.com/starwars/news/baby-yoda-build-a-bear-star-wars-plush/

I borrowed a very loud Craftsman genset from a friend after the 2010 flood for the first few days before power was restored. It was a lifesaver running fans, dehumidifiers, lights, and battery chargers. I bought a much quieter Honda EU6500is inverter after that and have never used it. I run it occasionally to keep it operational but that's it. My in-laws borrowed it once this past winter when their power was out for a couple of days. It worked great for them. Kept the TV, fridge, and lights running. I'll probably sell my 6500 at some point and get a 2000-3500w sized one like a Honda EU2000/2200 or a Generac iQ3500. That Generac is SUPER quiet (44 dBA) but at 109lbs. dry it's not the easiest thing to move around compared to the 47lb Honda which is pretty dang quiet (48 dBA) itself.

He also wrote one about a space elevator. Don't waste your time. The concept is mildly interesting, but it doesn't deserve a full novel.

Every major new technology is the play-thing of governments and/or the uber wealthy. These new private space companies are going to reduce the costs by a crap-ton. Remember about 20 years ago it was $20M to hitch a ride on a Soyuz to the ISS at a total cost of around $80M per launch (maybe the Russians still sell seats...don't know). I know it's not a trip to the ISS, but $200-400K gets you to space now on BO or VG. SpaceX cost to orbital flight is around $28M/flight vs the $80M/flight Soyuz. Give it another 20 years and we might be seeing space tourism attainable for more people than just billionaires. I'm glad to see BO and VG competing for the low orbit stuff and having plans to join SpaceX with higher launches and SpaceX planning for Mars.

I suspect "I've got my eye on you!" has been used more than once at family gatherings.

I have the Arlo also (Pro 2 version). It's easy to setup and included the free cloud storage which is nice. I got a 3-camera pack a few years ago on Black Friday at Costco. They have good resolution within about 8-10 feet (faces are clear). But beyond that, you can see everything happening within 20-30 yards just fine, but it doesn't have the detail to make out faces or license plates very well at any greater distance. In other words, I can see people walking by on the sidewalk, but unless they walk up on my porch I can't tell who it is. The newer cameras are probably better, but this suits my needs. Example. My front porch now with my car parked out front. I can see the car and it's clear, but can't read a plate.

Anyone besides me ever take their wheels off so they could clay-bar, polish, and wax the inside barrel? Here's the aforementioned 15 year old 200K+ miles Tribute. Not bad at all if I do say so myself.

You got me beat. I have a 2006 Mazda Tribute (rebadged Ford Escape) with the 3.0L V6. A hair over 200K. Besides regular maintenance (fluids, brakes, tires, plugs), I had to have a leaking midpipe in the exhaust replaced, but that's about it. A slight oil leak (like 1/2 qt every 5K miles or so) is the only problem.

Thanks, guys. Looks like $0.30 is a steal, and $0.50 is about the norm. That gives me something to work with. I may pick up a few boxes from AIM to get started, then keep an eye out for a better price per round on a bulk order.