A Judge says ‘No’ on prop 8.
It really comes as no surprise to me that so many people are up in arms over the issue of gay marriage. Having once been a christian conservative myself, I have a rather unique view on the issue. Before my deconversion, I would probably tell you that I had several good reasons to be against gay marriage; something about it not being ‘natural’, something about homosexuality being a ‘choice’, and something else about ‘traditional marriage’. I realize now that we humans are very good at rationalizing ideas and beliefs that we came to for very irrational reasons. I honestly can not think of a single non-religious based reason to deny a person the right to marry based on their sexual preference. I am positive that 30 years from now, it will seem like such an obvious thing (allowing gay marriage). “But it will lead to people marrying dogs and children!!” No, it won’t. What consenting adults want to do is their business. The key is 1. Consent and 2. Adults. Does this mean I’m supportive of plural marriages? Yes, as long as there is consent and the folks involved are adults (this means NO kids in the family). I’m also not in favor of the government giving tax breaks for married couples but that’s a different article.
Look for a coming podcast with my wife and me on this topic.
-Tom
First reported last year, whooping cough (pertussis) is still on the rise in Williamson Co, TX (the norther part of Austin and surrounding areas. It is imperative that you vaccinate your children and get a booster shot if you are an adult. Have an issue with vaccinations? Bring it.
I started a new job back in September of ’06 and haven been going through about 8 months of training. This has severely limited my ability to create articles for the site. However, beginning in May, my training will be over and I will have plenty of time once again to create new things and write a few articles a week. Please continue to email me with your projects and ideas.
-Tom
LINK
A fun way to shred your documents without wasting electricity. Basically using an old paper shredder and a hand crank.
COST: about $30
VIA instructables
Link
With the sucess of my garden, I found a need to learn how to preserve my bounty. This will allow me to have fresh tasting vegtables in winter along with helping to increase my small ‘just in case’ emergency food supply. Homecanning.com has great step by step instructions that are easy to follow and will quickly help you get on your way to canning and jaring.
Link: Homecanning.com
LINK via Fieldlines.com
COST: about $200
This looks like a pretty simple design.
“We have a large family so our gas bill was 80 therms or more per month. We now have it down to 21 therms give or take a few. It saves about 60 bucks a month. I have close to $150.00 in pipe and fittings.”
” The temp sensors I have on the in and out are used from an old boiler and, unfortunatly are very inaccurate. I know the cold water coming in is around 55 to 60 degrees f. The slower the pump runs the hotter the water comes back. On a hot day if I turn off the pump for 10 minutes the water comes back so hot you can barely touch the pipe. I believe I am getting about 10 degrees hotter out the other side. By the end of the day ( a hot one) I have 40 gal of water that is about 100 degree’s. So we went from 60 to app 100 degrees through the cource of the day. The tank happens to be on the other end of the house app. 40 ft of pipe so I have some pretty good losses due to convection and the pipe is not insulated yet. I am sure there is room for improvment in other areas also. I tried running the pump full time all day and shut it off manually but the snap disc seems to work better. It simply runs itself so I don’t have to do anything at all now.”
LINK via Fieldlines.com
Posted in Energy, Solar, Water
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LINK: Via Fieldlines.com
A simple and usefull arc welder constructed out of a few car batteries. This could be really usefull in a pinch.
Full Story
Posted in Energy, Other
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Cob ovens are easy and fun to make, and even more fun to use. With cob, your design is limited only by your imagination. A creative cob oven makes an excellent focal point for your back yard.
LINK
Here is a fun project you can do with your kids. It’s probably a good idea to try this project out before you go try something larger. Most parts are things you probably already have or can easily and cheaply acquire.
LINK
Cost: $50
It is my opinion that ducks are the best egg laying poultry for the backyard or a small farm. More specifically, the Khaki Campbell duck. These ducks are low maintenance, eat the bad bugs out of your garden, are sociable creatures and can lay over 300 eggs per year.
From OSU: ”The Khaki Campbell was developed in England during the early 1900′s by Adele Campbell. It was admitted to the American Standard in 1941. Though originally a cross of Indian Runner, Mallard, and Rouen, Campbells [sic] exceed all of these and most chicken breeds in egg production, with some strains averaging 300 eggs per year. Continue reading →
