This kind of sucks, the local is so slow and such a pain. They were running a bumpy ol’ articulated bus, and it running late and was absolutely packed. I was like, why do I put up with this crap?
Waiting for the bus after riding my bike downtown, there was some kind of drag queen or hooker who stumbled out of Albany’s Homosexual Bar waiting there with me for the bus. She was like I’m tired, I’m not wearing my shoes anymore tonight. And the bus was late. Cities have just gotten so dingy, the people have gotten so crazy, especially in the era of Trump 2.0.
The local bus was like all of the local buses. It was slow, and I had to keep a careful eye on the bike riding home to make sure no one touched it. And I was like, why the hell am I riding this bus? I can’t even keep an eye on the phone and be entertained as I got to keep an eye on the bike.
Next week with the time change, the options for getting home are either drive to work or bus to work and take the local bus home. It just sucks. And I wonder which option is worth it? Biking and busing is the cheapest option, but what is the cheapness for?
So some day I can live out in country, have a burn barrel, not wash out my plastic trash? Have livestock and hogs to feed? Be chopping wood and messing around with a malfunctioning solar and generators when there isn’t enough power in my battery bank? Aren’t I professional? Shouldn’t just drive myself to work? And buy that suburbanite home rather then renting that cheap drafty and dark dump in the suburbs?
Next year I need a new truck. Big Red has been good but he’s getting long in the tooth – with everything falling apart and rusting away after what will be 15 winters – and I want something smaller and easier to drive for a great adventure out west. Full-size trucks can be a bitch on narrow trails and campsite. I’d hate to have to back Big Red a half mile because no turn around exists on a dirt road blocked by a down tree or wash out. The truth is with my suburban office it’s only a matter of time before I have to start driving to work especially if I move rural or even to a slightly less dumpy apartment.
I am thinking about getting a Toyota Tacoma 4×4 with a six foot bed. I’m not set on an extended cab versus quad cab, it depends on what is available and what price. While I could consider a domestic make, I’m not sold on the reliability of the latest models of the Chevy Colorado and Ford Ranger. Nissan Frontier is a solid truck with a tested design but I worry that Nissan won’t be around in another ten years and that could make parts and repairs difficult.
There are other alternatives to buying a compact pickup. Some have suggested I would be happy with a freight van or an SUV. Then I could use the vehicle climate controls to heat or cool it. But I’ve never had issues with camping in the truck bed even in the winter with it unheated. Most vans and SUVs aren’t true 4×4 and aren’t good in snow or mud off the suburban street or even on rough dirt roads. Plus a truck and cap would be good if I end up owning land in the next 15 years – I’d much rather have a goat or feeder pig in the bed of my pickup then in the cab with scours spraying manure all over. Or hauling cans and unburnable garbage to the transfer station. And to be honest, I like camping a bit rough.
A quad cab would have more room for gear. I would consider paying extra for one of off-road packages, as I don’t think I would put a lift kit on the truck – as much as I like the higher ride – the lifted truck sucks to drive at night and a lift kit puts a lot of strain on the rest of the suspension especially if you plan to take it on a lot of dirt roads. I don’t climb over many boulders – occasionally campsites have a bit rough driveways but a stock 4×4 should be good for that. But I probably could use upgraded shocks for the roads I like to drive to get in the back country.
I would get a cap for the truck. I kind of like having the extra height cap but nowadays I’m more concerned about fuel economy as my new vehicle will inevitably have to be used for commuting so a flat roofed cap would be the most sensible option and best for long trips especially if I’m thinking of driving out west the next few years. Then if I eventually settle down in the homestead, small livestock and even bottle calves or feeder pigs could be hauled in the bed of the pickup under the cap. Or lumber and equipment. I would want Yakima tracks on the cap so I can mount the solar panel and my kayak rack to the roof.
I would mount the batteries – each in front of the wheel wells of the pickup and mount my solar panel on the roof of the truck. This set up I would have the inverter and solar controller not in the cab but in the cap. This would mean less wire to run. I plan to reuse all that equipment from Red. I would also run a wire to the hood with a relay controlled by voltage to connect to the alternator and starting battery for charging from the alternator or solar. Build a shelf like I have in my current truck for camping.
It’s not going to be my final vehicle but it will be likely my final vehicle before early retirement. 15 years from now I will be 57 and if I stay with the state I will be in good shape to consider retirement from government work to focus on building that off grid homestead. I may need a bigger truck like a 3/4 ton if I’m regularly hauling tractors, water or large livestock to the homestead. But that’s not the life I’m living in my mid-40s. But I think a truck like I’m describing makes sense for the next stages in life – still traveling and camping but also good for the inevitable commuting and still useful if I settle down in my years before early retirement for the future homestead.
I used to think it was not enough exercise that made you fat. But it's really the food that is fucking killing you. Not the chemicals, but the convenient, fully-prepared processed foods that are loaded with fat, sugar and salt. If it comes in a plastic bag or a cardboard box and you don't cook it, it's probably going to kill you.
My local library offers e-books both through Libby and Hoopla. With Libby you can borrow up to 10 books at a time, while Hoopla offers 10 books per month. I always try to get my 10 books from Hoopla before the end of the month, as they tend to have a wider selection – especially non-fiction and self-published works – and the download function that works more reliably in remote country without cell service.
I’ve had increasing problems with Hoopla having self-published books at that are AI generated crap. This is particularly true with self-published works. Sometimes self-published works are more technical in nature or are written by legitimate farmers and homesteaders, but there is a deluge of AI content that looks legitimate until you start reading, at least a few pages – and realize it’s just babble scraped off the internet and other sources.
I think I found a solution. I take the book title, and not only inspect the publisher, but also copy and paste the book title and author into Amazon and read the reviews. Then I know before I click borrow, I am getting a legitimate read, having the library reimburse an author for legitimate content rather then AI generated crap that it not readable or useful.
That 15 bean or probably 16 bean soup with the added pinto beans was good last night as was the fresh bread and acorn squash. This morning was apple-banana pancakes topped with frozen Maine blueberries. Finished reading that book about Managing Manure from Libby library, started looking through Hoopla my remaining nine October borrows. Soon it will be off to work in the old Menands next to sewage treatment plant on my mountain bike.Where they burn the shit and PFOAs and stuff.
Slowly but surely the sun is rising this morning. Things are so dark this year. Slept a lot last night, been drinking and peeing a lot of water, and I noticed a tick on my belly I pulled off myself yesterday. Do I need to make an appointment for the doctor to vax up on Doxycline? I don’t have a fever yet and don’t feel that shitty but only time will tell. If I feel like crap later on then I won’t hesitate to call the doctor, though I’m hoping they let me take my doxy after breakfast each day, as eating it on a raw stomach makes me sick. I’ll keep an eye on the spot were I pulled the tick for the classic bulls-eye, I saw some irritation around it and I bet I got it on Saturday but didn’t pull until Tuesday so I have a good chance of being infected.
That soup was good as was breakfast. Always nice having a well stocked pantry. I don’t like having to go to the store mid-week, especially when I would have to drive, though even picking up stuff after work on my bike often means there is stuff that is more pricey or not on my list as I would get at Walmart. I’d rather just have what I need to eat a healthy, well balanced and varied diet. Truth is it’s just nice to have a well stocked pantry of miminally packaged raw ingredients, especially when I’m so dependent on grocery stores for food. Some day I’ll a garden and livestock, though it certainly won’t be this year. Someways I wish I had bought that homestead next to my parents, it was certainly cheap but not the property for me, and I wasn’t ready to give up biking to work or living in the city, and being so car dependent especially with my old, fuel drinking big jacked up truck.
Tonight is the Pine Bush Dinner and it will certainly be dark by the time that is done, so I’ll be riding my bike downtown after that so I made sure my lights are fully charged. Turns out another one of the twist ties that holds the milk crate on the quick release for my bike broke, but fortunately I carry bungie cords for emergencies. That milk crate is also cracking after two years, I knew this would eventually be a problem – as it lacks good support and I tend to overload – I will swap out the crate I use for carrying camp supplies (and currently storing paper trash) for the one on my bike but not until the weekend as I want to move over the lights and reflective switches. I should order some additional rear lights as I always want to have several charged for the evening commute in the darkness downtown. I guess I’ll be taking the local bus home now after work come next week. I am actually surprised it lasted as long as it did.
Next weekend I plan to head out to Madison County or maybe down to Long Pond State Forest outside of Greene. Some depends on the weather, if it will be cold or snowy. This weekend though I’ll probably stay closer to home, as I have things to do but the following weekend through Veterans Day I want to get out one last time before Thanskgiving. Not sure, I am still thinking about doing that section of the Erie Canalway between Utica and Rome, as much to say that I’ve done it. After Thanksgiving will still be big game season but it will be winding down in the North Country, so I’ll probably do the East Sacanadaga River or maybe Piseco-Powley depending on the chances of snow or how much is on the ground. Then who knows – probably Rensselaerville State Forest in December or maybe Burnt-Rossman along one of the asphalt roads.
Truth is I spend too much time watching cabin porn videos, dreaming of a life that could be as I watch drip-by-drip as my investments and experience grow, and the years go by much too quickly it seems.
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Things are so dark this year. Slept a lot last night, been drinking and peeing a lot of water, and I noticed a tick on my belly 
I pulled off myself yesterday. Do I need to make an appointment for the doctor 
to vax up on Doxycline? I don’t have a fever yet and don’t feel that shitty but only time will tell. If I feel like crap later on then I won’t hesitate to call the doctor, though I’m hoping they let me take my doxy after breakfast each day, as eating it on a raw stomach makes me sick. 
I’ll keep an eye on the spot were I pulled the tick for the classic bulls-eye, I saw some irritation around it and I bet I got it on Saturday but didn’t pull until Tuesday so I have a good chance of being infected. 
Always nice having a well stocked pantry. I don’t like having to go to the store mid-week, especially when I would have to drive, though even picking up stuff after work on my bike often means there is stuff that is more pricey or not on my list as I would get at Walmart. I’d rather just have what I need to eat a healthy, well balanced and varied diet. 
Truth is it’s just nice to have a well stocked pantry of miminally packaged raw ingredients, especially when I’m so dependent on grocery stores for food. Some day I’ll a garden and livestock, though it certainly won’t be this year. Someways I wish I had bought that homestead next to my parents, it was certainly cheap but not the property for me, and I wasn’t ready to give up biking to work or living in the city, and being so car dependent especially with my old, fuel drinking big jacked up truck.
Dinner 
and it will certainly be dark by the time that is done, so I’ll be riding my bike downtown after that so I made sure my lights are fully charged. 
Turns out another one of the twist ties that holds the milk crate on the quick release for my bike broke, but fortunately I carry bungie cords for emergencies. That milk crate is also cracking after two years, I knew this would eventually be a problem – as it lacks good support and I tend to overload – I will swap out the crate I use for carrying camp supplies (and currently storing paper trash) for the one on my bike but not until the weekend 
as I want to move over the lights and reflective switches. I should order some additional rear lights as I always want to have several charged for the evening commute in the darkness downtown. I guess I’ll be taking the local bus home now after work come next week. I am actually surprised it lasted as long as it did.
Some depends on the weather, if it will be cold or snowy. 
This weekend though I’ll probably stay closer to home, as I have things to do but the following weekend through Veterans Day I want to get out one last time before Thanskgiving. Not sure, I am still thinking about doing that section of the Erie Canalway between Utica and Rome, as much to say that I’ve done it. After Thanksgiving will still be big game season but it will be winding down in the North Country, so I’ll probably do the East Sacanadaga River or maybe Piseco-Powley depending on the chances of snow or how much is on the ground. Then who knows – probably Rensselaerville State Forest in December or maybe Burnt-Rossman along one of the asphalt roads.
