Ammunition for an Unsuccessful Elk Draw

Formal Results
License Type:  NONRESIDENT COW/CALF ELK
Results:  Unsuccessful

Informal Results
Ammunition Availability:  Very Limited

I'm planning to go west this year for Antelope hunting and wanted to add a cow elk to the mix.  It didn't add much (relative) to the cost, but added time to the hunt which is nice since most antelope hunts are not terribly long.  It will take a solid two days to get to Wyoming for a three day hunt which implies more time driving than hunting.  The journey is part of the adventure, but it is a small additional investment in money with a return in quality time with the addition of the cow elk tag.

Since most of my hunting is East I don't shoot beyond 100 yards very often.  I've shot a couple deer and wild boar at a greater distance than that, but not by much.  I have an excuse to spend some quality time at the range to get ready for the greater distances that can be encountered out west.

However, ammunition availability is dreadful right now.  Politics and paranoia aside, when influential politicians started talking about significant gun control, less influential politicians (and some influential individuals) also talked about removing ammunition availability, using price (tax) as a proxy.
In addition to firearms, ammunition began flying off the shelves.  Some of this is paranoia.  Some might not be.  Everything is up in the air.  Since I shoot primarily my own handloads, I thought I was largely immune to the mayhem, but this is not the case.  Just about everything-gun related is in short supply.  I almost always have over a hundred rounds ready to go for every caliber I own and components for many more.  With what I feel I should do prior to heading west, I am still a little concerned.

I've recently tallied up what I have for the two rifles I may take to hunt antelope and possibly elk and I guess I have a minimum needed.  I have a few hundred rifle rounds and about twice that many in components.  If I could just locate one more pound of the correct smokeless powder, I'm sure I'll be all set.
Ammunition availability does seem to be starting to return, albeit slowly.  A local store had a good supply of bulk .45 ACP ammo.  Higher priced "hunting" rifle ammunition is still available.  Since my shooting is currently hunting focused, the increased cost of this option is only slightly objectionable.  It will allow saving handloads for hunting.
What is frustrating is the suggestion that gun violence is going to be controlled by taxing ammo out of existence is ludicrous.  This is an option that will only affect the hunter and avid target shooter.  A lunatic doesn't need much ammo and probably doesn't care what it costs.  Suicide is an expenditure that is immaterial of cost.

The 2013 Wyoming Elk draw was this past week.  My draw was unsuccessful.  According to my outfitter, there is still a good chance at a leftover tag later this summer.  I can't count on that.  Hopefully I do draw an antelope tag, but I guess I shouldn't count on that either.

Regardless of what happens, I'll enjoy spending some time at the range.
President Obama has stated he respects hunting and its traditions.  Coupled with a widely publicized photo of him shooting an over/under shotgun.  Unfortunately, it doesn't pass the smell test that a man who never shot a gun prior to becoming president has suddenly found enjoyment out of skeet shooting.  The White House photographer might as well have used a green screen to achieve the same result without subjecting the President to the horrors of an inanimate object he objects to so much.

I'm a little disappointed I didn't draw the elk tag as I thought they were pretty easy to obtain.  I can't blame politics for not drawing it though..
Political pragmatism forces all but the most rabidly anti-gun politician claim their gun control schemes will not affect hunters.  Unfortunately, it already is.

Unintended Accelerated Consequences

Toyota is in the news this week.  It was reported by many sources that the car company has agreed to pay $29million to several states over the unintended acceleration issue.

In a previous post, I wrote a review of my 2009 Toyota Tacoma.  After rereading that review it could be perceived that I don't like the vehicle.  I do.  At the time it was the best option for me.  There are likely better options now, but revisiting that 5 years later isn't realistic.
The tone of that post is pretty realistic though.  I don't feel the need to cut a major vehicle maker any slack.
I do think Toyota is getting a horrid deal here due to overly dramatic sensationalism surround "sudden acceleration."

Many cars now are drive-by-wire.  As anyone who has ever used a computer, owned a smart phone knows silicon can do unexpected things especially when coupled with frustrating software (or firmware).  Say "Abort, Retry, Ignore" to anybody but a child and watch shudders of frustration relived with those three options.

Major car companies are under intense scrutiny in the areas of safety.  There is no doubt that Toyota has put many fail-safes in their systems.  There is no doubt they have tested these systems under every imaginable scenario except one...the idiot.  It is impossible to make something foolproof because fools are so ingenious!
What I find frightening about vehicle safety is what the general public and regulatory bodies expect of the inanimate object.  There is a push right now to possibly ban assault rifles, certain magazines, or otherwise affect lawful gun owning.  Yet, based on numbers alone, we are over 4-times more likely to die in a car accident than be shot (not counting suicides, which I won't here).  If living a life devoid of the excitement of significant crime or substance abuse, it is about 10 times more likely one will be killed in a car.  But vehicle safety is a joke.  Forget that routine traffic norms are ignored, vehicle manufacturers are making vehicles that help people park; we are encouraging people who do not have the skill to put a 2 ton vehicle in a defined area at slow speed to drive at any speed desired.

Driving tests should be done in a car from the early 60s.  Think manual transmission, no power brakes, no power steering. If you can't safely drive and maneuver that vehicle, no license.  This is similar to having a 4wd truck.  Drive in 2wd, and the 4wd is there to get you out of trouble.
Look around the next time at the state Department of Motor Vehicles.  These are the people we share the road with.

There were two cases of Toyota Sudden Acceleration that stick out in my mind.
The first was a housekeeper who crashed her bosses car.  The press paraded this example of Toyota's failure until it was clearly revealed that she had floored the accelerator and the brake was never touched.  Operator Error.

The second was James Sikes issues in California.  He claims his Prius screamed down the interstate outside of his control.  Google James Sikes and see what your top choices are.  You don't even have to go to the conspiracy sites for this one.  What is most unexpected about this story was that he was able to get his Prius up to 94MPH.  I wasn't able to find how that situation was eventually resolved, but I didn't care enough to look too hard.

Unintended acceleration?  Hit the brakes.  Even a Roush Racing 540HP Mustang can be overcome by the brakes.  To much of an idiot for that?  Neutral, or off.  Then park, forever.

Toyota doesn't get off free with this.  Once these questions came up, some damaging info was eventually revealed. As is often the case, it wasn't the {crime} it was the cover-up.  Maybe some day we'll all learn that lesson.  Until then, Toyota is $29million less rich.  The states get a few bucks and the lawyers are happy.

I'd rather see the press be $29million poorer on this one.  Want to feel even better about how the press reports on cars?  I have no opinion on Tesla, but this is pretty funny.  Maybe there is a place for Jayson Blair back at The New York Times afterall.

I had an extra day off recently and finally (after almost four years) got my Toyota recall done for the accelerator/floor mat on my Tacoma.  After a subsequent trip to the DMV, I just don't feel any safer.  Maybe I'll see if I can find a good used early 80s Audi.

Literary Masturbation

"No, I'm just kidding.  Marriage isn't really that bad.  It must be nice when you can lay together...side by side...in the dead of the night...in separate coffins." - Author Unknown

I cleaned out my wallet a short time ago.  I don't keep much outside of the essentials in it, but tucked inside a folded dollar bill (without serial numbers, but that is another story) was the following scrap of paper:

This was a snippet of text from my college newspaper that I must have been carrying around for the last 20 years.  I remember cutting this out, but don't remember much else about the article it came from.  When I was in college, the internet was still in diapers and I'm pretty sure the college newspaper was only printed in hard copy.  Distributed around campus, it was always interesting to see what was printed and the group of us read it pretty religiously.
Likely, the rest of the article is forever lost to the ether.  I did a few searches online with increasing specificity without any luck.  Hopefully the author might clairvoyantly feel a little pride that I've carried this around and found it, but it is possible, even likely that he or she doesn't even remember writing and publishing this.  The author could possibly be happily married.

My views on the subject of the snippet may or may not have changed over the years, but that is not the intent.  I expect that much like that article, most of what is written is read and forgotten or never read, much like this blog.
Most writing is some form of literary masturbation.  Done by the author and for the author.  Even if read, is likely mentally and physically discarded.
I will occasionally browse blogs.  There are a lot of talented people out there with something to say.  There are also a lot of apparently abandoned blogs out there.  The Library of Congress recently took everything in Twitter and archived it, possibly in perpetuity.  That is a lot of chaff to hold the wheat.  There are a lot of people out there who say something because they can.

"Just when you think you've graduated from the school of experience, someone thinks up a new course." -Mary Waldrip

There was an article posted recently summarizing some research that basically said we think history ends now.  That we've reached a point where we realize we've changed in the past, but will not change in the future.  This is borderline terrifying and probably a good reason to never write anything down, or save anything.

“I gave up writing when I was ten, too dangerous.” “Only if someone reads what you write and so far we haven’t had that problem.” Bill/Hank from the movie Naked Lunch

Maybe some day someone will be searching for a specific article in their college newspaper and now that text will be found by an increasingly specific internet search.
Unfortunately, all that will be found will be the wrong literary masturbation.

Toyota Tacoma Oil Change

Every vehicle with an internal combustion engine needs to occasionally have the oil changed.  I think I probably change the oil a bit more often than is needed, but it is relatively cheap insurance (although I realize it wastes resources in this time of "modern" sensibility).  I almost always change the oil myself.  I've gotten "free" oil changes at the dealership a couple times, but they still want to charge for rotating the tires, or other things which should be done.  Nothing is ever free.  The dealership also likes to try to sell other services at the same time, then berates me when I tell them I do not want my transmission oil changed (since I did it myself not that long ago).
I also like changing oil myself since it gives me an opportunity to continually scan the vehicle for other problems (rust, cables or hoses chafing, fasteners coming loose, etc.).  I had one boss who said all cars only need one oil change a year regardless of miles, but he was really an idiot.  I change on a mileage interval only, without respect to time since I drive quite a bit.  I won't list that mileage, but suffice to say that the old adage of changing oil every 3000 miles on newer cars is bunk.  You may notice an older MGB in a few of these pictures.  This (older) vehicle still gets oil changes on the 3000 mile schedule.  The MGB does burn/leak oil at a non-trivial rate so it is in a constant state of refill with new oil; this is not a replacement for appropriately spaced oil changes.
All cars come with a manual.  Read it.  If you bought a car used and it doesn't have one.  You can usually download one for free.  Read it.  It gives maintenance items not always obvious and other possible guidance.  Read it.

The first step of an oil change is to jack the vehicle up.  In some cases, it is possible to change the oil without this step, but other maintenance items require it and it does make it easier to not be crowded under the vehicle.  Jacks are for LIFTING! Jackstands are for HOLDING!  Lift the car with your jack.  Then secure the vehicle with jackstands.  Treat the jack as an unreliable coworker.  Once on jackstands, test the security of the vehicle by gently nudging it.  Never get under an improperly supported vehicle.

With the vehicle secured on jackstands, remove the oil drain plug.  Ideally the vehicle will be slightly warm to allow the oil to drain quickly, but not so hot that it is hard to work on.  On the Tacoma, the oil drain plug is 14mm.  All drain plugs have a seal of some kind, be it an o-ring, a fiber, plastic or crushable washer, or specialty drain plug.  Inspect the seal and replace as needed.  If sealed with a crushable washer then always replace.

While the oil is draining, there may be other needed maintenance items to attend to.  Many newer cars have no grease points, but the Tacoma has grease zerks on both the front and rear drive shafts.  I find it odd that Toyota chose to go this route, but these duly get greased.  Clean around the zerks and grease with a grease gun using a minimum of grease; it should not be oozing out all over the place.  The Tacoma manual also calls for the "propeller shaft" to be tightened.  I check the bolts each time I change the oil.

During the oil change is also a good time to rotate the tires.  Along with maintaining pressure, rotating tires is a great way to ensure maximum tire life.  Rotate the tires and check tire pressure.  I violate the Tacoma manual in one respect in that I like the tire pressure slightly higher than one is stated in the 2009 manual.  I recently (finally) had some recall work on my truck and the dealer decreased the pressure down to below the lower limit, and told me my tires are dangerously worn.  They are far from dangerous and in fact are near the upper limit stated by most tire companies for minimum depth and significantly above the legal minimum.  The dealer happen to be having a great sale on tires!  Since the dealer lowered the pressure so much, the TPMS light "happen" to come on a few days later during an extreme cold snap.  Effin' Dealer...
When installing tires, always use some method to achieve proper and consistent torque.  This is best done with a torque wrench, but I typically use a torque extension on an impact air gun.  These flex at a specified torque allowing tires to be put on quickly, but consistently.  I used to not believe this, but now admit I was wrong:  Inconsistent torque on wheels results in warped rotors.  Torque the wheels in some appropriate fashion.  No, you can not estimate good enough with a ratchet, breaker bar or tire iron.

The Tacoma manual specifically states to rotate tires front to back only (not crossing one set to reverse rotation direction).  I believe this has something to do with the tire pressure monitoring system, but am not really sure.  I don't really like doing it this way, but follow the manual's recommendation.

Remove the oil filter.  I had one vehicle which said the oil filter only needed to be changed every other oil change.  This is another example of cheap insurance.  I always change the oil filter with a decent quality filter.  As I've owned many vehicles and worked on countless others, some have had nearly impossible to reach oil filters.  As such, I have a large supply of every filter wrench imaginable.  I've found the larger "spider" type oil wrenches to be the best as far as universally applicable.  The pictured oil filter works well on just about all vehicles I've tried to use it on with appropriate extension and/or other ratchet unions.

Clean around the oil filter housing if applicable with a rag if needed.  Lubricate the oil filter seal with a thin film of oil and install it.  The oil filter should only need to be somewhere between tight and snug.  It does not need to be thread stripping tight.  Make sure it isn't cross-threaded, the oil filter should spin freely for a few rotations before the seal hits the sealing surface.

During an oil change is also a good time to be sure all the vehicle lights work.  How often are vehicles seen on the road with a tail light or brake light out?  A lot.  Newer headlights are usually bright enough that one can be enough in most cases.  Check all the lights.

Install the oil drain plug and refill the engine with oil.  Do it in that order.  If you change oil often enough, eventually you'll forget and drain out the new oil as it goes in.
Many people hold an unnatural brand loyalty to engine oil.  Some will wax ad nausea about the benefits or absolute horror of conventional oil or synthetic oil.  There is no end to the discussions in automotive message boards about various makers of engine oil - just groan and ignore it.  It is probably best to avoid the very cheapest oil except in a pinch but even the cheaper oils meet API minimum requirements.  Any quality oil of the proper viscosity will do its job.  What is the right viscosity?  Read the manual.  An outdated notion is that vehicles need higher viscosity as the engine ages.  Nope, use an oil in the manual's state viscosity range.

Once refilled with oil, start the vehicle and check for leaks.  Use the jack to raise the vehicle, remove the jackstands and lower the vehicle.  Drive a short distance and clean up any mess from the oil change.

Dispose of the used oil properly.  In most (if not all) locales, disposing of waste oil is covered by law as it is a hazardous waste.  It is a waste product with value and future utility.  Many places will take it for free; even if it costs a nominal fee to dispose properly it should be done.
The vehicle should be good to go for many miles.

Time Lapse: Picture a day for a Year

"The sun is the same in a relative way but you're older, Shorter of breath and one day closer to death."  - Pink Floyd

This project started last year on New Years day.  I had to overnight an Amazon order to get the camera in time, but it seemed important at the time to begin on the first day of the year.  My plan (now completed) was to put up a time lapse camera on the back of the house and take a picture every day.  These then stitched together into a movie would create a real but dead memory of 2012.  What I pictured in my mind was more dramatic than the real thing.  I saw snows coming and going all winter, but the winter of 2012 was the winter that wasn't.  I saw grass growing, wheat growing, trees growing leaves.  All these things happened but slowly and more remote.  I saw animals in the yard, cows moving in the background and these also happened.
But, what the movie actually shows is very little because very little happens.  This is a metaphor for what a year usually is.  Every once in a while, a big year will occur in our lives where something momentous happens - either good or bad.  These things will happen though within the frame of everyday normal life. Grass grows.  Animals move.  Crops are harvested.  Snow happens.  If something important happened, it would have only been important to the camera if it happened within the approximately square mile within the lense.

This is probably a good thing.  The cows moving in the frame shows an occasional stop-motion view that looks like their movement is actually captured near real time.  It isn't of course.  The cows stoically stand in the rain, oblivious to their impending doom on the bun.

So how was this done?  I set up a Wingscapes TimeLapseCam on a 4x4 post attached to the deck on the back of the house.  The apparent "movement" of the earth during the first six months is actually the 4x4 warping as it dried.  The camera housing is listed as weatherproof, but I mounted it so it was under the eaves of the house, offering further protection.  On a relatively frequent basis, I recovered the pictures from the camera and stored them on my computer as a redundant copy.

The camera comes with software (TimelapseCam Director) to stitch the individual images together into a movie.  However, I found more flexibility with Microsoft MovieMaker.  The .wmv file format is a little bulkier than .mp4 format, but is near universally readable thanks to Microsoft's dominance (at least for now).
When I initially set up the camera, I didn't fully understand the settings so an initial few pictures were taken at night.  I did not include these in the finished project.

Personally I have really enjoyed this project.  The fact that nothing happens on camera is why I love my quiet little plot on this planet.  The sophomoric creativity was at least seen to completion.  One entire year of a picture a day.  How many of our adult projects of this level of triviality are never seen to fruition?

I'm actually going to continue this on.  Since I've been playing with other time lapse projects, I've bought a less expensive Moultrie Time Lapse Cam.  It looks nearly identical to the Wingscapes, but does not come with an adjustable objective lense.  The firmware seems cruder as well.  I'm also going to change the time program to take three pictures a day.  I'm not sure how I'll use the 3/day, but possibly this will be another showing of the seasons, as the sun moves north and south, appearing higher and lower in the sky late in the day.

2012 is over.  Outside of the next couple days, I have absolutely no idea what 2013 holds.  If it happens within the square mile behind the house, I may catch it on camera.

Pecan Waffles

The predictions about the end of the world being predicted (mis-represented) by the Mayan calendar turned out to be wrong.  We are all surprised.

This time of year can be pretty lonely at work with everyone scrambling to use vacation for the end of the year before it is lost forever.  I'm surprised how many people (jokingly) mentioned the Mayan prediction in the Out-of-Office Autoreplies, "I'll be back if the Mayans were wrong on the end of the world.  So I may not be back.  More than likely I'll be back."  Some of them were quite humorous.  I replied to a couple of them and was surprised about how many people "on vacation" ended up responding back.  At least I am entering 2013 with all vacation that I need to use being happily used up.  I am carrying over 10 days, the limit allowed by the Co.  I'll probably be scrambling at the end of April to use them as I was this year.  But, if I ever go over that hump and lose days, I know I've crossed a line that tells me I am not in a place I want to be.
"Every now and then, you realize, with perfect clarity, that you are just not where you want to be."-Killraven
In reality, I may just be a whiner.  There are lots of people who would consider it an improvement to have the kind of problems I end up having.  That is something all of us need to be reminded of once in a while.

Once again, I've heard coworkers and friend complain about the stress of "the holiday season" that stretches from somewhere near Halloween to somewhere after New Years.  Simple is better, but even simplicity should be taken into moderation.

Lots of things could define 2012, for now I'm going to pick Pecan Waffles.  But, most reflections end up being wrong.  The mirror almost always distorts reality, especially when our face is pressed up against it.  Waffles represent as much of a reality as anything else in that many, many non-work mornings this year started out with them (and sorry for the superlative).

So Christmas is four days away.  The end of the year is 10 days away.  We've almost survived, enjoyed, hated, loathed but hopefully experienced 2012.

May your waffles always be perfectly browned.

2012 Christmas Letter

(Note:  Slightly anonamized)

It has been a good year.  Sure there have been some bad days, but perhaps they are just there to remind us that there are better days in the future.
“I want it all!  The crushing lows, the dizzying highs, the creamy middles.” - Homer Simpson

As is always the case, most of the year was spent doing mundane things.  But, there is a quiet contentment in pecan waffles very early on a weekend morning or in reading a book while watching the sun set in the evening...

However, life is more than books and waffles.  After a 2-year hiatus for other important things, we got back to real motorcycle touring.  This year’s late summer trip took us through 14 states as far away as the Tacoma Narrows and the Pacific Ocean.  Other experiences of the adventure include Eastern Montana’s Big Empty; the Bitterroot/Clearwater and Cascade Mountains; the John Day region of Oregon; the Nevada Desert and Bonneville Salt Flats.  The road wound through Utah and Nebraska to have wonderful visits with family before arriving safely back at home, better for the experience.
“We keep passing unseen through little moments of other people's lives.” - Robert Pirsig

F had several trips to see family and a trip to Disney with her sister in late spring.  She is preparing to abandon TJ for New Years for her second (yes, 2) trip to Disney this year.
TJ had his usual (not sure these could ever be considered usual) wild boar hunting trip in the winter and had several shorter solo motorcycle trips to connect with friends.

Work is still work, but it pays the bills.  
F's responsibilities continue to incrementally grow at {work}.  The economy has picked up a little this year and people still like {stuff} in their lives.
TJ survived two (yes, 2) rounds of cuts at {work}.  His work group got “help” from some external consultants for several months early in the year.  Think the movie Office Space except that reality is always more squalid than fiction.
“Chaos in the midst of chaos is not funny.  Chaos in the midst of order is.” - Steve Martin

The dogs are doing well.  FB still loves her walks as long as they are done on her terms.  J’s life revolves around the furniture.  S is doing remarkably well, still puttering along and patrolling the back yard at the age of 16.

F continues spending time making amazing quilts.  TJ began to look at some of the projects to do around the house.  A few got done, but most never went past the looking stage.  That is OK, we hope to live here for a long time.
“You better take care of me Lord, if you don’t you’re going to have me on your hands.” - Hunter S Thompson

It has been a good year.  We hope your year was and will be great as well.