American Sunshine

There's nothing quite like drying your clothes outside. It's so cheap it's practically free (clothespins are a buck for 50 of them), it gets you outside on a pretty day, your clothes last longer if they are hung up right, they smell better, and its the first step for most people in weaning off dependence on machines to handle relatively simple tasks.

Drying clothes outside is an easy task; wash your clothes, toss in plenty of sun with a bit of wind and after two hours.. Voila! Dry clothes.

Now, if only I could make taking care of the grass so easy.

Life Pro-Tip #1: Learn to be Handy

From time to time, things break down. This is a fact of life, and you might as well get used to it. However! Your reaction to things breaking down changes based on one central point; how handy you are. If you are handy, you'll figure out the issue and fix it yourself. If you're kind of handy, you'll figure out what the problem is enough to have someone else fix it and not get raked over the coals in the process. Barring these two qualities, you're left with paying much more to fix something or to simply replace the broken item all together at a greater cost.

What does it mean to be handy? In my mind, handiness is a combination of logic, common sense, mechanical aptitude, skills, and acquired knowledge. It means you'll bring whatever is necessary to bear to address a problem. 

Sometimes fixing something requires you to make do with less than optimal tools, or with missing components, or in cramped quarters with poor lighting etc. It can be stressful, aggravating, and dirty work.

It's also one of the worthwhile things one can do with their time.

When you are fixing things, you're taking ownership and responsibility for those things. You are learning more about them and how they operate. You're learning how to adapt and improvise. You're acquiring skills that you can apply to other problems later in life. You're building confidence in your own capabilities and reinforcing your belief in your own independence. And, you're adding a notch on the pole marking things you've done, and the more you do the greater your "Can Do!" attitude towards problems will be. Being handy really means being a Jack of All Trades. Don't worry; you still have time to master one trade while being skilled in the others. The most important thing to remember here is that you must possess a willingness to learn and to try in order to even begin to become handy, and wanting to learn and wanting to try are always traits in high demand. 

Summer Pro-Tip #1; Working Out in the Heat

Folks like me (scientists) end up being outside a lot in a variety of field conditions; pretty days are nice but you need to be able to work in both the heat and the cold, and during precipitation events as well. If pays off handsomely to know the little tips and tricks that make working in those conditions a lot easier to handle, as working outdoors is both dangerous and necessary.

Hyperthermia is a condition characterized by an increase in core body temperature above the average 37 degrees C, or 98.6 degrees F. and basically means that you have failed to thermoregulate your body's core temperature. This usually occurs through being heated directly by the sun (radiation), too much or too restrictive clothing (prevents convection), lack of evaporative cooling, or being mildly dehydrated which impedes sweat production (evaporation) or cooling through respiration. Hyperthermia is tricky and it sneaks up on you; actively combating hyperthermia before it rears its ugly head is the best strategy to take. How can you stop hyperthermia in its tracks? Here's how;

1.) Be completely hydrated. Your urine should be clear, copious, and you should be urinating approximately every two hours if you are completely hydrated.

2.) Avoid working in direct sunlight as much as possible.

3.) If you must work in direct sunlight, dress appropriately by wearing lighter colors, loose clothing that protects your skin from sunburn (which, other than being an annoyance, increases your core temperature to boot). Wear a hat which fits your head well and has plenty of built in ventilation to help keep your head cool. If you are wearing boots, take them off during every break to allow the built up heat to dissipate.

4.) Wet your clothing if possible as the evaporating water will help cool you, but wring these out to reduce weight. Having a wet cotton shirt underneath something like a panama shirt which is loose helps a great deal but it still modest.

5.) Avoid drinking caffeine or eating big meals prior to working outdoors and avoid drinking caffeine while working outdoors because these increase your metabolic rate, which increases the amount of body heat your body puts out. Additionally, both require water in your body to process, which could lead to potential dehydration.

6.) If you are still feeling hot with all of these tips, wet handkerchiefs or bandanas and tie them around both wrists and around your neck, centering them on the major veins and arteries located in each. Your veins and arteries are closest to your skin in the interiors of your wrists and the right side of your neck. Cooling the blood moving through them will help you cool off quickly.

Renewal

I recently finished reading J.F Perkin's "Renewal" series, which has been put out for the Kindle, more or less chapter by chapter until it was finished. Actually,  I read the series cover to cover twice, but more on that in a sec.

First, the good news. I really appreciated and enjoyed this book! The plot moves along at a clipping pace, keeping track of a series of events in two time-lines. It's interesting to watch how an initial group of survivors deals with a societal collapse, and how the next generation has become acclimated to it. I found myself purchasing the next chapter immediately after finishing reading one, and by the time I had finished reading chapter 3 I went ahead and purchased the rest at once. The characters are memorable and you find yourself invested in them pretty quickly. You will probably be able to directly identify with at least one character in the book. (I mentally aligned myself with Kirk and wished his character had more explanation, face time, and resolution).

Now, the bad. After I finished reading the entire book, I went back and re-read looking for the mistakes that I had noted on the first pass through. This book is hampered, in a small way, by plot errors. I am not calling Mr. Perkins out on the plot per se, but how he keeps track of minutia from chapter to chapter. Dusty's name changes from Dusty Bearden to Dusty Baer, and he goes from being married to one of Bill's family members to relationship status unknown. Terry's handgun given to him by Teeny Town goes from a 1911 style .45 to a non-descript 9mm. There were a few more things, here and there, but it's all more or less small detail work. All of this stuff doesn't detract from the strength of the story, but it does serve as a distraction. When I'm lost in a book, the last thing I personally want is a "What a minute, I thought he said that.." moment. These remove the reader from the story, and you really want your reader to be lost in the story and gobble it up in one sitting.

The plot can also test your ability to suspend disbelief. The enemy in the book universally acts stupidly, which in a post-apocalyptic setting seems a bit inane. I'm not sure why raiders could capture an entire county but not be capable of acting as a unit in the raid on Teeny Town. The raiders caught in the vise of the Teeny Town forces and Terry's militia don't have an escape route, but instead of fighting to escape they just surrender? Really? A group of dangerous fighters aligns themselves with Teeny Town at the last minute, on a suggestion from a grandson of a dude that knew Bill's dad almost 40 years ago? Are you sure? Bill accepts a dangerous mission to rescue the state police, but doesn't negotiate a payment for services rendered first? Really? Bill meets Terry and immediately decides to hook him up with not only a leadership position in Teeny Town, but he wants him to court his daughter too?! That last one especially only gets a passing explanation in the text, almost as if Mr. Perkins is saying "I know, I know, just go along with me on this one".

Rating my book on this scale, I'd give it a solid 7.5 out of 10. The plot is solid but at times tests your ability to suspend disbelief. The characters are memorable and mentally approachable, but a lack of attention to details mars things just a bit. Some characters are not explained as well as I would like, but fortunately Mr. Perkins is making this into a trilogy so I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the series. Mr. Perkins has also stated that he is re-writing the Renewal Series into a single book that corrects some issues and highlights some characters more. If he releases this on Kindle, I'll be sure to snap it up and read it again. I'm looking forward to more work from Mr. Perkins!

The Advent of the Thesis

Just this last Saturday I was able to get out and finish taking all of the cross-sectional measurements required to be able to crunch the data portions of my thesis. It's a little strange to feel that portion of the work lifted, like weight, off of my shoulders.. But at the same time, I can feel the weight of all the writing and effort that must necessarily go into my thesis in order to succeed this semester.

Listen folks; the effort for getting things done shouldn't wait until the last minute. You shouldn't put things off until you only have just enough time to get them done. Don't wait for someone to strike the gong; the starting pistol went off a while ago and you just pretended you didn't hear it. Get to work, get a little done every day on everything you can and just watch as your efforts compound into a body of work you can stand behind proudly.