!!! SEPP to Boot: Stephen's Experience (BEL)

The metal-wood-line contraption is likely for kindling, grass/straw/oat sheafs, etc. I line the simplicity and material re-purpose.

There are dozens of canvasish firewood carry totes around basecamp and the labs. I'm thinking someone wanted to break down and carry bricks around without waiting for them to cool off after experiments...

BRK #185

Happy Pina Colada Day to you...!

I'll save the "in-progress" photo of the Solarium bunks for tomorrow, as I think it will be finished then and there are already plenty of photographs to post for today's Half-Assed Holiday celebrations.

One of the main things for Pina Colada Day would be to improve something in the Library and/or the Dock (the long work-table/desk in the Library), and Moto Jeff and Caleb were in charge of that. Grey and I, on the other hand, were in charge of the food and libations for the occasion. So I snagged a bunch of photos of our pizza-making and drink-making efforts. Here we go.

Bringing up the temperature of the house to at least 80F is a primary objective for the day, and we can check-off that one. Sure, we could have been a bit more diligent with this objective, but I felt pizza and Pina Coladas were a higher priority. We eventually nailed all three of those, at least.



We also wanted to make a bunch of pizzas. Grey started off our sourdough crusts (thanks, SEPPer Austin!), and then I finished them off. It's been a minute since I made a pizza, and I'd never used the house oven for any baking, so it was a personal adventure and definitely a learning experience. Things turned out all right, I'd say.











It may not have been the most-flawless of Half-Assed Holidays so far this year, but the rum in the Pina Coladas seemed to have smoothed-out the rough edges for almost everyone.
(as an aside: if anyone knows of a decent vegan pizza-cheese recipe, please share it... All the store-bought varieties are sorely lacking, in my opinion...)



We wrapped the evening with a screening of the Disney version of Swiss Family Robinson, made in 1960. Apart from wanting the tiger to really really eat someone, it delivered what it promised, and for a film as old and potentially-hokey as that one, it still holds up as far as family shows are concerned.

That's all for now. Thanks for reading, and enjoy your day...!

Stephen B. Thomas wrote:[
One last question: what is this? I found it along with a couple others similar to it, in an area where bricks and maybe cob supplies were stored. Anyone with an idea of what this might be used for? The other boots and I were thinking this would be used for carrying mounds of cob, though admittedly the edges of the metal seem a bit sharp (though they may also be cutting implements for cob forms, for example). Any ideas?

Those are log carriers (not for firewood). Someone made those once because we were carrying logs that were just a little too big for the normal log carriers. The hooks just wouldn't dig in well and we kept dropping the logs. No one liked using them (except the person that made them). We ended up using the kind that is basically a stout stick with a rope attached that wraps under the log to be carried. Bear Paw made us one with nicer handles and it is usually in the shop somewhere.

BRK #186

The interesting about Fermentation Day is that the payoff isn't immediate for a number of the projects. For example, the brisket went into the brine last week. Same with the sauerkraut. The mustard was ready three days after it was started. Sourdough bread takes at least a day of percolating before you attempt to bake it.

Well, today it all came to a head. It's an un-official Half-Assed Holiday: Pastrami Day. In the history of the world, there's never been a vegan/vegetarian excited about other folks eating pastrami sandwiches. Until today, of course.

...Vegan applies rub to brisket; film at 11.



Sandwiches were ready at just before 6pm tonight. Plain and simple: it was a hit.



Thanks once again to SEPPer Austin for all his help with all the fermentation, sourdoughing, recipes, and encouragement for us to level-up in the meal department this month.

Prior to dinner however, it was a Boot Day like any other. Checking in on the herb sprouts, and things look all right. Wondering how to protect them against this weekend's impending absurdly-cold temperatures...



Moto Jeff and Grey were busy adding the finishing touches to one of the new lumber racks out at the Berm Shed. We loaded it with some of the material from the Sawmill later in the afternoon.



Finally: Caleb and I are still perfecting the narrow-twin bunks in the Solarium. Still going to hold off on posting all the photos. But here's a photo I caught while Caleb was trimming-up a decorative-and-functional component with the table saw.



That's all for now. Thanks for reading, and enjoy your day...!