It’s A Hard Life!

The Lean Mean Lurching Machine

MORNING LIGHT

Dawn

is a faint thin line,

a scarlet gash unzipping.

Bloody sunlight splashes the icy land.

Thirteen

is a coven of white doves fleeing,

a circle wheeling against racing cloud.

Night pales as long shadows grow.

 

Purity

Out just before sun broke the flat line of the horizon.   The air is crisp and clear with a salty tang.  Minuscule ice crystals cling to fronds of clumpy grass, spiders webs glisten and the sky is a polished pale blue dome.  Not a cloud mars its incredible clarity.

Directly overhead, east/west, horizon to horizon, a thin white line catches sun before  my world, a precision cut with a fine scalpel blade  bisecting the dome of sky.   I could be looking up at a gradually opening wound in the underbelly of the universe awaiting white pulsing intestines disgorging at any moment.

The aircraft that left the fine straight contrail  must have been very very high and traveling at considerable speed.  The fact that the compact trail of vapour is still intact  suggests that there is little upper atmosphere disturbance.  The jet streams must be having a break.

All I hear are gurgling water runnels as they drain slowly into a nearby dyke, the squelch of my feet, the gentle tap, tap, taping of the dogs  paws breaking the odd ice skim, and the harsh screeching of a host of marauding gulls.  An occasional honk from distant pastures suggests that a few geese and still  feeding inland.

Somehow, now the sun has risen, the world feels at peace with itself.  Perhaps in this tiny flat piece of land there is little to cause friction.

It is a joyous moment and I feel whole once more.

Something FROM The Weekend

Home Monday and we both came down with streaming colds.  The full works, hacking coughs, aching ribs, headaches, stiff joints….you name it!

I rarely get ‘colds’ and when I do I’m the typical caricature male – I’m the only one who does (and ever has) felt this bad…..etc…Yeah, I know we’ve all been there.  To be fair I’m not suffering anything like as badly as Mrs F.

I have managed to focus on one ongoing project – that of windshields – and may soon have a result to show.  More of that anon.

Now I’m heading for the hot toddy maker.

Something For The Weekend, Sir?

0600 hrs. – Overnight gales seem to have blown themselves out and the rain has stopped too.  Sky is clear and blue(ish), just faint glimmerings as the sun comes up.  Everything looks washed and sparkly clean.  Smells good too, a combination of a November smell of fallen leaves (beginning to rot down) and tangy salt-laden sea air – makes me want to take deep, deep breaths to absorb the quintessential essence of our good land.

Shortly Mrs. F,  Jess the Lean Mean Lurching Machine and I are going out for the weekend.  Not too far, but we’ve packed some essential supplies, food for the mutt, a blow-up bed for Mrs. F and a tent and a couple of stoves for me (well, along with other camping – not backpacking kit). and we’re heading to a more inland location to see our daughter and grand-daughter.  I have things to test out and think about so it’s not entirely without an ‘outdoors’ theme.  I hope to get some walking in too.  Time will tell on that one.

Newly Found Blog – for the lightweighter

I can’t remember haw I came by a reference to this Blog – minimalgear blog but it looked interesting so I had a search through.  Interesting concepts WELL WORTH A READ I’ve also added it to the Blogroll.  Enjoy.

Treking Pole Extenders….New Gear On The Way

Having received the BPL.co.uk’s  conceptually brilliant new walking pole extender (which involves removing the bottom section of both poles and then inserting the extender into both poles and adjusting to size {length/height}) and ascertaining that it does not work with some poles, or (with Pacerpoles if it fits – and some it doesn’t) necessitates using the angled handles at the foot and top,  I spoke to Bob at BPL.co.uk only to be given the heads-up on another extender currently reaching fruition.

This new extender will involve a larger inside diameter section which will allow the  handle/top section of each pole – especially Pacerpoles – to be removed and the two bottom sections of each pole to be joined.  Simplicity itself when considered in the cold light of day.

So keep your eyes peeled for the new addition….AND remember, you first heard about it here.

Unquiet Land And Twitter

Well folks,  Sod and Murphy went to town overnight.  Constantly gusting wind screeching and howling across the land, and through, around or toppling anything not tied down, nailed down or cemented into the landscape.

And, I could have gone out yesterday in sunshine and calm, but no, I had to await parcels (which didn’t turn up).  Today there are two of us and we can take turns in waiting, but nobody in their right mind really wants to get out and walk in this weather.  Looking out of the window I note that gale driven rain is lashing the fields and the dykes are rising quite dangerously.

Boredom set in with a vengeance yesterday and I signed up for Twitter, not quite sure either why, or what it’s likely to do for me, but anyone interested can look HERE.

More later maybe.

Windshield Mk2

I have been trying to rationalise my windshield shown in the last video so that it could be compatible with almost any type of canister-top stove AND almost any type/size of pot

What I have arrived at is shown in the following video.  I’m sure it’s not the last ‘mark’ but at the moment I’m satisfied with its performance and simplicity.  The canister-top heat shield/reflector doubles as an automatic spacer for smaller pots as well as ensuring the downward heat is reflected back upwards.  This system is efficient to the point where after a 15 minute maximum heat burn the canister top is still cold.  The only heat transfer downwards is that which would normally occur through the body of the stove.

The ’spacer is 2 cm larger in diameter than a ‘250′ gas canister which ensures a minimum of 1 cm gap between the lower part of the shield and the canister.  The semi circular cut outs (three in all)  plus additional holes punched between, ensures there is a free flow of unheated air around the canister.

If this shield is to be used with a meths stove it can either be inverted for a straight forward one fill = one burn stove or slightly raised to allow cooling air at the base, or the tube of a remote feed system.

Silence of the Fens

0500 hrs………suddenly I’m awake.   Something has disturbed my sleep.  I lay and listen.  Nothing.  Hmmm, what has awakened me?  I don’t hear anything…..Ah!  That’s it, I don’t hear anything.

SILENCE

Now that IS something new.  For the past 7 or 8 days the endless cacophony of howling wind in power lines, telephone lines and the incessant groans from outbuildings  shuddering under the wind’s sledge-hammer  blows has been a constant accompaniment to everyday life.

Now nothing stirs.   The big dawn sky is a pale washed-out blue tinged with an eerie green to the East.  That will be the sun’s precursor and it’s promising a clear and warm (relatively) morning at least.

Fine day and what happens?  I have to await two deliveries before I can venture far away.  Typical,  Murphy strikes again!   His companion Sod will no doubt have a hand in dealings too.  The delivery drivers will either get lost and not turn up or turn up about 1600 hrs.  There again, I suppose they may not come at all today!  Time will tell.

Update…2100 hrs. Both Sod and Murphy must have been out to play today…the bl**dy deliveries didn’t arrive – so tomorrow is another day.  But Mrs F should be home from Dublin later so we can both do  ‘delivery sitting’ in shifts tomorrow.