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After Long Hiatus


Ham
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Its been a few years.  I was surprised that my old account and password still worked here.

 

How is everybody?  What have you been doing for the last few years?  What's new?  Anything?  Hopefully we are no longer the same.. and need reintroduction.

I have been instructing math classes for the last 12 years.

Still a Ham Radio operator, callsign KB8PGW.. but always getting involved in new activities.  The newest is Traffic Handling.  I pick up messages via radio from a digital board and deliver them the last mile to recipients.  And relay outgoing messages to the National Traffic System.  Still get involved in contests and Field Day.  Still construct radio projects by hand..

Net Control operator for QMN, the Michigan Traffic Net.  Nice bunch of people there.  I will get to meet them in a couple of weeks at the annual picnic.

What else. 

I loved Real Analysis, but it was the bane of my existence (stunk at it).  It's taken me over ten years to figure a lot of it out.. I said once if the light really came on with Real Analysis I'd go back for the doctorate.. we will see about that.

Still live in a town of otherwise nice people, they are pretty anti social.  My best friend here is the cat of the residence, Samantha.

Now have seven grandchildren.  Six boys, one girl.

Still believe in a God.. despite the world's best or worst efforts..

Exercise the best that I can.   Getting older, problems with one knee.. but keep moving the best that I can.

What about you?  What is new, or what's not new?

 

 

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I retired from the US Navy in 2001. At that time, I got active on Greasespot Cafe. I have since moved out into the woods of Maine, and re-invented myself as an off-grid organic farmer. This spring I celebrated 20 years of retirement. This summer I reached the age of eligibility for Social Security benefits.

 

We attended twigs from the 1970s up until 2016. When we finally made a complete break from them.

 

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1 hour ago, Oakspear said:

Good to see your virtual face! I recently started posting again after sporadic absences. My 20 year anniversary of getting kicked out of TWI recently passed & I'm gearing up for the 20 year anniversary of my ex-wife kicking me out :dance:

It's 24 and 11 for me.  Okay with the first, still sad about the second.

George

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14 hours ago, Ham said:

Galen, you are living my dream of dreams..  I would move off to the woods, grow tomatos and raise chickens in a heartbeat.  Run the radios and such from solar panels..

Maybe you should.

 

Maine is over 92% forest, with many rivers. We bought two woodlots, one parcel with a small bit of peat bog on it for $350 an acre and the other parcel has a quarter-mile of river frontage for $770 an acre. For a total of 150 acres of land. We heat our home with firewood, and we have a solar power system for our home and recently got a hybrid car that recharges from our solar system. Property taxes are pretty low [$1.05 per acre]. 

 

 

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  • 3 weeks later...

We have had chickens.

 

To each project there is a learning curve, that learning curve pushed us in the direction of doing 12-week meat birds, then they go to freezer camp. For 12-weeks each year we maintain chickens, and that gives us enough chicken to eat for a year.

Since we live in dense forest, the predators are fierce. We have tried many times to allow chickens to free-range, but those efforts have never been successful. We can keep poultry inside coops just fine, but if they get out, it attracts predators and once that happens the predators hit so hard that they dig tunnels under the coops, they chew holes through the chicken wire to gain access into the coops, and they become relentless until after all chickens have been eaten. It is less work to just raise chickens for a short period of time and send them to the freezers. 

 

We have done much better raising pigs.

 

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Heya Ham ! Im in Australia and in my late '50's..hear ya about the body starting to get the odd niggles and creaks lol. I've just thrown in my job and about to start a 'not for profit' establishing a home for young and older men and women who may have mental or physical challenges (or both) and who may be living with ageing parents who worry about what will happen to them once the parents pass away. Something that I really, truly believe God has put big time on my heart. I know it will be a huge challenge but IF it really was God, I'm convinced He's got it ! I guess it's also my shot at leaving behind some type of noble legacy in my lifetime.

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22 hours ago, Galen said:

We have had chickens.

 

To each project there is a learning curve, that learning curve pushed us in the direction of doing 12-week meat birds, then they go to freezer camp. For 12-weeks each year we maintain chickens, and that gives us enough chicken to eat for a year.

Since we live in dense forest, the predators are fierce. We have tried many times to allow chickens to free-range, but those efforts have never been successful. We can keep poultry inside coops just fine, but if they get out, it attracts predators and once that happens the predators hit so hard that they dig tunnels under the coops, they chew holes through the chicken wire to gain access into the coops, and they become relentless until after all chickens have been eaten. It is less work to just raise chickens for a short period of time and send them to the freezers. 

 

We have done much better raising pigs.

 

I would free range the chickens in the day and lock them up at night.  Hens of course.  Fresh eggs are nice.  Plus they tend to hunt ticks to practical extinction..

 

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16 hours ago, Allan said:

Heya Ham ! Im in Australia and in my late '50's..hear ya about the body starting to get the odd niggles and creaks lol. I've just thrown in my job and about to start a 'not for profit' establishing a home for young and older men and women who may have mental or physical challenges (or both) and who may be living with ageing parents who worry about what will happen to them once the parents pass away. Something that I really, truly believe God has put big time on my heart. I know it will be a huge challenge but IF it really was God, I'm convinced He's got it ! I guess it's also my shot at leaving behind some type of noble legacy in my lifetime.

Good deal Allan.  I think God sent me back to school to help kids learn math.  The degree opened the door.  I will keep instructing classes as long as they will have me.

 

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22 minutes ago, Ham said:

I would free range the chickens in the day and lock them up at night.  Hens of course.  Fresh eggs are nice.  Plus they tend to hunt ticks to practical extinction..

 

and within a week they are all gone. 

 

We have tried multiple times, we tried it over and over, year after year.  Obviously you do not believe me, but I am telling you the truth. 

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