Paracord Bracelets

I've had a lot of spare time during my time here in Rhode Island and one of the skills I've picked up is paracord braiding. Since the goal behind my move to Rhode Island was to kill my debt I didn't want to go broke buying Christmas presents for the buddies who I lean on so much. That's where the paracord bracelet comes in, great gift for the modern survivalist who has everything. About 7' of paracord goes into each bracelet. 530 pound rated stainless steel fastener on three of them gives them even more utility.

The stainless steel fasteners came from Home Depot, $2.67 each. The paracord came from Amazon for $7.50, and the plastic snaps were $13.99 for 25.

It's a nice piece of gear to have with you, I always have at least seven feet of cordage (not to mention how much is available if you break the cord down into it's individual strands.)

If you're interested in learning how to make your own paracord bracelet check out YouTube for some great instructional videos.

I miss my ducks!

The garden the ducks patrolled.

So my adventure in backyard egg production began with the best of intentions. Ducks for fun and eggs. I did my research, I looked at Khaki Campbells online, great egg layers, friendly, but they just looked too plain. Then I stumbled upon Indian Runner Ducks - The Jester of the duck kingdom. Sounds simple right? A trip to Dunlap Nursery in Caldwell, Idaho was my next step.

Being a novice to the duck world, I walked in, asked for 5 Indian Runners and a large bag of chick feed. Just one small problem, that took me almost a month to realize, I was the proud papa to 5 gregarious Peking ducks. Another month or so later it also became clear that four out of five of my Pekings were never going to lay eggs - as their lack of quacking confirmed.

Don't get me wrong, the Pekings were fantastic personality wise, friendly and social. But I was dead set on the Indian Runner so I turned to Craigslist. I found a male and female pair for $12 bucks and took them home. Again, more lessons learned. Ducks are social creatures, but this particular male Indian Runner I brought home was very dominant, and even if he was only 3/4 as big as the juvenile Pekings he was running the roost. I'll get back to that story in a later post!

Ducks over chickens, Chevy versus Ford, Stick versus Automatic, it's the age old debate. I'll give you my reasons for choosing ducks. First and foremost I just thought they were hilarious to watch, and I enjoyed their personality as they wandered the backyard. Next the Indian Runner eggs were like clockwork, with Mildred (the Indian Runner) laying an egg almost every day. The eggs are about 25% bigger than chicken eggs, and they are amazing to bake and cook with due to the larger yolk. Finally, the ducks (Pekings and Indian Runners) were great for my garden!

Do you remember Mr. Miyagi in Karate Kid teaching Daniel to catch flies with chopsticks? That was what it was like to watch the ducks grab flies from the air. The ducks terminated each and every slug, fly, and mosquito with extreme prejudice. Another plus over chickens is the ladies did a great job of foraging and feeding themselves while never tearing up my garden.

Cons, that egg that Mildred laid each day turned into a daily Easter Egg hunt everyday when I returned home. Duck eggs cooked by themselves are not chicken eggs, they didn't taste bad, but you knew there was something different going on. The ladies quack, most of the time it's not too obnoxious, but every morning when the sun first peeked up it was as if the ladies had won the lottery. Indian Runners are pretty shy, Mildred was always wary, where Matilda (my Peking) came running up looking for a handout every time I came into the back porch. The final downside, the ladies loved concrete, that wouldn't be a problem if not for that being the material that made up my back porch. Nothing a hose and push broom couldn't remedy in five minutes, but still hard to explain to citified friends...

I'll have to show in another post the simple cheap coop I built for them, it wasn't ideal to over winter them, but during the warm months it allowed me to keep them safe at night and compost there droppings in place. Each week when I mowed the yard I would cover last weeks droppings with saved newspaper, then dump a bag or two of grass in the coop. It worked out fantastically, I never smelled a hint of duck poop wafting through the back yard.

If you're thinking about getting some ducks, do it! You'll have a blast!

Everyday Carry - First Aid Kit

In my last post I reviewed the pack I use as part of my everyday carry. Today I'm going to talk about the items I carry inside of it.

Starting in the upper left hand corner on the picture below I have hand sanitizer (also a nice addition to starting a camp fire), Quik Clot Gauze, a Gerber Bear Grylls fire-starter and whistle, about ten feet of duct tape wrapped around a credit card, a screw driver with two flat head and two Phillips bits, a Bic lighter, a Gerber knife sharpener, a pair of travel scissors, water treatment tablets, four nitrile gloves - a pair for me and someone else, a muslin bandage, ten small bandages, a half dozen powdered drink mixes, more ibuprofen, self-adhesive tape, two handi-wipes, lip balm, cough drops, an ink pen, a large rubber band and super glue.

I carry an Israeli Battle Dressing in my pack as well. It does not fit in the case with the other items. It is vacuum sealed and self-contained. Is it perfect? Definitely not, but it does give me peace of mind while I'm strolling about.

Name Your Link

Everyday Carry - Backpack

For folks without a car (like myself) we have to carry our Go Bag (also referred to as a Bug Out Bag or Get Out Of Dodge Bag). I prefer to call it my Go Bag, just because it doesn't sound so ominous.

The nice thing about working in a city is there are so many people carrying backpacks that no one gives me a second look. I was issued this great pack back in 2004, prior to a visit to Iraq. It traveled with me while I was coaching and is a great carry on bag (empty the bladder before security!) when flying. It has really seen some miles since I moved to Rhode Island as my daily Go Bag.

It has an insulated area for the 100 ounce hydration pack. On hot days I fill it with ice cubes and water, for the next eight hours or so I have plenty of ice water.

The bag itself is extremely roomy. In addition to the compartment for the Camelbak Hydration unit, there are four more individual compartments. The biggest will hold a laptop and XBox 360 console with room to spare. There is a smaller mesh compartment built into the large area. Right now I have a 100' bundle of para-cord, a bottle of ibuprofen, and a Frontier Pro water filter in that mesh pocket for an idea of it's size.

The middle compartment is an organizational area. Great area for small items that you need to organize, pens, electronics, chargers, keys, etc.

The final pocket on the back is easy to access. You can leave the pack on your right shoulder, take it off your left and slide it around to open it. It's a decent size pocket that will hold a couple of small paper back books (think Louis L'Amour not phonebooks) and whatever else you want to keep close at hand.

The Cordura fabric has held up amazingly well for all the traveling and walking it's been through. It's not water proof per se, but it does a really decent job of letting most of the water trickle off.

It has MOLLE strips on the back, with a couple on each side to attach a few things. The chest and waist straps are handy. The waist strap is well padded and does take a fair amount of weight off your shoulders and support it on your hips.

If you're looking for a sturdy long term pack give this one a look. It's not cheap, but it does a lot of things really well.

All Aboard the Shoe Leather Express

I've been driving since I was fourteen, as that was the legal age in the early 1990's back in Idaho, and I've had a car for all but four months since my senior year of high school. I sold my car before I left Idaho for my new job in Rhode Island. I had a rental car for the week before I started work to find a place to live and get settled in, but as of March 13, 2011 I was without wheels. So what have I learned?

First and foremost I'm still alive, so not having a car is not a fatal condition. Have there been times where it would have been more convenient to own a car? Absolutely. However, since I made this move to pay off debt, the savings in gas, parking, maintenance has definitely overshadowed any inconveniences. 

So, how do I get where I need to go? The Shoe Leather Express, as a TI used to say during Air Force Basic Military Training. As of October 30, 2011 I've logged 649 miles on Noom, a GPS application for Android. I've burned approximately 71,000 calories and lost 15 pounds, not a bad trade off for no car. I've walked to Seekonk, Massachusetts east, Lincoln, RI north, and Cranston, RI to the south. There really isn't a better way to learn a new city, than by walking it. As far as prepping goes, I know for sure that I can walk 10-15 miles with a decent load on any given day.

On the days it's too wet, too cold, or I simply slept in too long I take the bus. I don't enjoy the bus, at all, ever. But it's generally dry, and the bus system here in Rhode Island does have a bus running about every 10 minutes. (Have I mentioned how broke Rhode Island is?)

But what if I really need a car? I've whittled it down to two options, ZIP Car, which I've only used a handful of times. $50 membership fee, and $8 an hour to rent anytime (gas included!) It really couldn't be easier, reserve online, waive your RFID card over the reader in the windshield and drive away. Cheaper than a taxi, with none of the smell.

For the weekends I have Guard Drill I have rented a car from Thrifty. Weekend rates with taxes and gas fill up usually cost me about $65. For the extra income it's been a fair trade off for me.

In my next post I'll talk about the pack and the contents therein that have been with me all over my treks.

Etón Microlink Crank Weather Radio with Flashlight, Solar Power and Cell Phone Charger Review

I purchased the Eton Emergency Radio on 31 January 2011 from Amazon.com for $30 which included free shipping. I've had the product in my Go Bag since. That bag has seen close to 650 miles of hiking, rain exposure (inside the pack during rain) and an all around beating inside that bag. 10 months later finds it still fully functional.

The speaker is tinny, but clear, there is a head phone jack if you're looking for a bit better sound quality. The weather band comes in clear in both Payette, Idaho and Providence, Rhode Island. There is a tune light that does an adequate job of helping you fine tune the radio.

As for battery life, it's been rock solid going several hours after a good cranking. The solar charge is passive, and while I wouldn't rely on that alone to power the radio, it's a nice bonus.

Finally, perhaps the best feature, the USB out to power other devices. While you have to be continually cranking the handle to get a continual charge, it is more than enough power after 5-10 minutes to get out several text messages. During a real emergency that may be the best way to get information in and out regardless.

Overall impression of the Eton Radio, solid construction, rock solid value.

Click below to pick one up.

Etón American Red Cross ARCFR160R Microlink Self-Powered AM/FM/NOAA Weather Radio with Flashlight, Solar Power and Cell Phone Charger (Red)