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It used to be that I never abandoned books I had started. I always pushed through stubbornly, no matter how much I disliked the book. However, I have more particular taste now, and I am more acutely aware that the time I have left for reading is limited. Hence, I am now willing to make […]
I think I am about to throw out (or freecycle) my bread machine that I have had for more than two decades. I’ve decided I need better control over how bread dough is kneaded to develop gluten. When I go on long day hikes, which I often do for trail maintenance, I like to pack […]
The first audio recorder I used for film was the Zoom H4n. Then I upgraded to the Roland R-26, then the Zoom F4, and finally to the Sound Devices MixPre-10 II. Each time, I congratulated myself that I was stepping up to a recorder with better preamps, or so I believed, but I could never […]
I haven’t read enough film scripts. One I have read is the screenplay for Trumbo, written by John McNamara. I read it before having watched the film, and it moved me: to feel sadness, joy, and pride for the characters, and to shed actual tears. I’m no expert, but I would call that good writing. […]
The trail adopter’s manual for the Ozark Trail recommends the use of a hand weeder, which is a tool I’ve always called a sickle, though it really isn’t. It looks like this: It works well enough, once you get into the swing of it (pun intended), though there is definitely an upper limit to what […]
I started watching Top of the Lake, mainly because it’s a British police procedural, and because it has Elisabeth Moss in it. I’m only one episode in, but it’s definitely weird. I hope the dominant, entitled drug lord trope turns out to be less cliché than seems so far. Anyway, there’s a character, GJ, who […]
I think I am ready to add another genre of film to stop watching: World War II films. I am seeing trailers for Tom Hanks’ Greyhound, and while it looks good, my reaction to it is completely ho-hum. That’s because I can’t imagine there being anything about it that I haven’t already seen. I have […]
When I first adopted a trail to maintain, I was given a manual that included a list of recommended tools to bring. Among the recommendations was a bow saw. I was expected to be able to cut branches up to six inches in diameter, and I would need a saw. I had had plenty of […]
Some of my favorite films are based on novels written by John le Carré. The Russia House, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Constant Gardener, and even The Tailor of Panama. So naturally I decided to start reading his novels. I began with The Spy Who Came In from the Cold (I haven’t seen the film), […]
I have been wanting to do so for years, but I finally bought myself a Grizzly G4015Z combination lathe/mill. I don’t have huge plans to make things with it. Primarily, I intend to use this to learn about machining processes and get some experience doing them. Ultimately, I hope to help my brother open a […]
