Thinking about getting a kayak, but I didn't really think about securely storing it.
The most practical method for me is likely hiding it. It'd work for now, but wouldn't work after I cleared out the back. (I guess I could hide it in a neighbor's yard... but, I would think clearing out the back would likely invite people to come inside to take a look since it's only partially obscured by the front foliage. But, with me here 95% of the time, they might not be so brave.)
And, I'm definitely making 'drinking water at home' a reality. The country store 7 miles away ate 2 of my quarters, the one 15 miles away was "Sold out"(? I thought the machine treated tap water on the spot), and then the one 16 miles away still worked. I've called in these glacier machines /so/ many times thinking they actually did something about it, but it's never changed, and a 32 mile round trip for a 3 day supply of drinking water is ludicrous. And if the vehicle becomes inoperable, I'll still have a way to cook.
u
Seems like sources recommend boiling water. Seems more energy efficient than distilling it and it'd probably suffice for rainwater. The major question is storing it. I don't think I want to add bleach to the drinking water?
Some say chlorine. Multiple pages tell me that the whitehouse has said chlorinated water consumption (Most tap water) is found to increase cancer risk by 93%. Couldn't find the whitehouse page, but I'm guessing that's because it was changed... maybe by Trump, I don't know. Weird I couldn't find the study, since I'm sure it was a study of some sort, not a government investigation?
Anyway, the connection between cancer and "chemicals in the water" consumption is pretty well known. Seems Houston suffers a bit of that from a certain industrial chemical (Articles online; I already posted it in a previous entry). So, this wouldn't be surprising, but it does open a few questions. Like... salt water... is that free sodium and chlorine atoms in there? If so, why wouldn't it increase cancer risk?
Anyway, articles online are finding aspirin decreases certain cancers. And so does spinach. And, yes.
I'm thinking more bloodflow -> less cancer, because that's the like the only connection between aspirin and spinach. If this is true... more physical activity -> less cancer. Which seems pretty reasonable to assume since certain cancers have been increasing, probably due to the increased sedentary nature of society in recent decades (Due to modern technology and societal trends. I.e., playing xbox vs playing outside. Playing xbox vs going to the beach.)
And, yep, I saw this and though it's a great idea for this area.
https://www.amazon.com/Mosquito-Reflectors-Sketon-Protection-Carrying/dp/B01L63BCXS/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1492354795&sr=8-8&keywords=bug+pants
Breathable mosquito proof suit. Awesome. Get sun exposure, keep the mosquitos off, avoid using DET, and won't sweat to death inside meaning it's probably suitable for working outside, something that's highly desirable in this area during the morning and evening hours. (Midday is just too unbearable for "hard work"; lighter work is fine, like gardening.)
Once I get this thing, I won't have the "I don't want to wear DEET and I don't want to get bitten by mosquitos" excuse, which has been holding me back recently. And there's just so much good sun and opportunity for physical labor going to waste, uggg.
Anyway, I want to get into the habit of driving my van to the neighborhood entrance, parking and then biking the rest of the way. It's an enjoyable stretch and I figure I could use the exercise. I would just bike from my location, but the hassle of the dogs, the dirt roads and hostile neighbors just makes it so unenjoyable (Dirt roads aren't really problematic by themselves, but bumpy dirt roads at high speeds when dogs are chasing you with my tiny front wheel recumbent certainly is, lol.). And, I don't even pedal on that part anyway because I'm using my electric 20mph ability to outrun the dogs, lol. My neck of the woods is pretty nice, so far, because I don't really have hostile neighbors /right here/. That might change in a year or two; seems this area is developing pretty fast.
Anyway, I've determined a surefire way to tell if you're running low on bloodsugar. Eat a fruit with some liquid (Like grapes or apples; not bananas.) and if it tastes exceptionally good, you're probably running low. I sure was yesterday (Those carrots were delicious... normally they aren't that delicious, lol.), making me question if my 170g/daily carb starch consumption was sufficient or maybe the body just wants sugar, and starches just won't cut it. I don't know, it seems like fruit and vegetable starches work on two different systems, and the body needs sucrose/fructose or something regardless of starch consumption (I could be wrong). It sure didn't seem like my body was "really craving peas" like my bloodsugar was low with that daily consumption level. 1/2 cup of dry peas seems like a lot.
I'm thinking there's something special about fresh fruits and sucrose rich vegetables that the body just really wants, regardless of everything else consumed (Like peas).
And, now focusing on the rainwater.
https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/drinking/private/rainwater-collection.html
These people make it sound like rainwater = chemicals, bacteria and parasites. So, it seems like you'd need to filter and sterilize the rainwater for human consumption. They even suggest not using rainwater for the plants you intend to eat(What? Well, I guess that entirely depends on the irrigation method and plant. Drip irrigation won't affect the trees and bushes and ground plants where the skin isn't usually consumed wouldn't be affected, i.e., watermelon. But spinach would likely be affected.)
For watering the vulnerable plants (Root vegetables whose skin is consumed), I guess one should sterilize the water.
For drinking and cooking, it'd probably benefit from classic filtration and disinfectant. I'm guessing I'd be more worried about disinfectant if i'm not cautious in choose the rainwater collection material, as I assume the chemical levels in rainwater is pretty darn low, especially as compared to tap.
Well, let's do some energy calculations. I wonder what kind of power sources might be practical for boiling.
https://elementsofheating.wordpress.com/2012/09/26/how-to-calculate-the-kw-required-to-heat-a-volume-of-water-in-a-particular-time/
kwh = volume in litres x 4 x temperature rise in degrees centigrade / 3412
1.5 gallon = 5.67 liter
80C rise from 20C and 100C(boiling)
kwh = 5.67liter * 4 * 80C / 3412 = (5.67*4*80)/3412 = .530 kwh = 530 wh
Oh, well, that seems doable using 300W of solar during the sunnier months.
During the winter, I might have to use fuel or wood. Possibly fuel via a generator.
And looking online at the filters, it looks like reverse osmosis would work. It removes parasites, bacteria and particles. I wouldn't need the charcoal for removing the chlorine or /probably/ other chemicals. Now, what does a suitable RO system entail?
Seeing that a few of the RO units have a problem with bacteria (Builds on the filters; fishy water smell.), someone recommended UV. So, I searched, and there are UV sterilizing units one could use. So, that's pretty much all I'm looking for, I believe? Run the rainwater through a UV filter to kill the bacteria. Taste might still be affected by the dead bacteria, so a charcoal filter might help with that (A simple pitch filter).
Here's one such UV filter.
https://www.amazon.com/Ultraviolet-Purifier-Reverse-Osmosis-Sterilizer/dp/B0110LTT1I/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1492361996&sr=8-6&keywords=reverse+osmosis+uv
I'm guessing if one wanted to remove the dead bacteria from the water, you'd use a RO filter or possibly even a simple pitch filter. But, I'm not really worried about that, since I'm pretty sure I already eat tons of /live/ bacteria via the food I consume.
So, I'm thinking all I really need for rainwater collection is a UV filter, since I would think the salts/mineral/metals content would be pretty low. The rain is essentially one big distiller, lol.
And that system is 1 gal/minute and 6W consumption. Wow, so energy not intensive, easily powered by solar. I could even run my garden water through this (Assuming it wasn't sourced from the ditch; filtering ditch water for gardening is just a cost nonstarter. Ditch water would probably be suitable for the trees and bushes.)
Ok, so the system right now is.
rain -> rainbarrel -> uv filter -> pitcher filter (W/ charcoal filter) -> drinking & cooking water
uv filter = kills bacteria & viruses
charcoal filter = removes the dead bacteria, improves taste
rain -> rainbarrel -> uv filter -> garden water for the sensitive plants.
And, it looks like Prime's "2 day shipping" is now "3 day shipping" for me, and that's for the lighter items, lol. If I didn't know any better, I used up Prime's shipping budget for me, so they've downgraded my shipping speeds, lol. Either that or this "2 day shipping" thing is a lie.
And, it is HUMID today. Wow, the heat and humidity really go together to make the inside of the RV a bit uncomfortable.
And that reminds me... I need to tape up the holes in the tarp. After seeing the cost of a ladder, I decided I would get ontop of my van, lol.
And, man, the nearby Kroger is not opening until "late summer". It looked like it's a week from completion since last month, but I'm guessing cash shortages might be limiting how quickly they can open.
And, man, my poop has been rather black lately, seems like since I went grocery shopping? That's telling me that it's rather rich in minerals, which isn't too surprising.
Anyway, a cup of water, 2 TBSP of cocoa, 1 tsp of honey - just enough sweetness to take the bitterness off the cocoa, but not "sweet", just the way I like it. Apparently a tsp of honey is 5grams sugar.
And, on craigslist, looks like all the plastic 55 gallon drums are downtown, and all the local ones are metal. Oh, that kind of sucks (It's 120 miles roundtrip and, more importantly, the highway traffic within 30-40 miles of downtown houston is unbearable.). I guess I could make one trip to downtown and load up on as many barrels I can and then keep a lookout for local plastic drums to complete the collection. I would do that on "a Day I could afford to waste", since getting in and out of downtown Houston from here takes a good 4-6 hours total.
And, it looks like I could activated charcoal to make my own charcoal filter or make a charcoal filter from wood ashes(Less effective than activated charcoal)
http://survivalcache.com/diy-making-an-activated-charcoal-filter/
Apparently hardwoods make a better charcoal filter (don't doubt it, they are definitely far denser. It seems that, in this area anyway, leaves = hardwood. Pine needles = soft.). After I cut down the trees in the back, I will have plenty of wood for whatever. (I already have enough hardwood already)
Anyway, it's interesting these local grocery stores, mainly HEB and Krogers. (South Carolina has its own special crop, like Piggly Wigglys, lol.) It's interesting because these stores don't exist in Spokane, WA despite their combined national grocery retail presence, especially Krogers. (HEB is not surprising; it seems they're purposely focused on dominating the Texas market? Which if there was a state to conquer, Texas wouldn't be a bad choice.)
Well that explains it, it appears Fred Meyers is the "West Coast" brand and "Krogers" is the East coast brand. Which is interesting because they don't have similar pricing strategies; Krogers is a bit cheaper than Fred Meyers. Granted, few grocery stores in Spokane are "cheap" - might have something to do with heating costs. The only 'cheap' grocery store is an unusually small one (Trader Joe's), which would be explained by heating costs. Otherwise, costco is the only other realistic option there.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkO7nGpcfLI&bpctr=1492452988
I watched video earlier of this, and it's now been removed. It's the facebook live video of the guy shooting the elderly black man in the head, and he died pretty instantly. It kind of amazed me how quickly that happened, instant one shot kill. I guess video games aren't faking it.
Guess I'll probably will have to find it on LiveLeak. Seems like it's the only non-censoring video site online.
Oh NO! Someone didn't upload it to liveleak. This video might disappear from the internet.
That goes against the spirit of the internet.
And, it looks like YouTube did a pretty thorough job of removing all uploads. Drats, it's my mission now to find the video, download it, and upload to LiveLeaks.
And, unlike this guy, if I were trying to commit a crime of this magnitude and intended on getting away with it in a recently purchased vehicle. Here's what I would do.
Get a fake ID.
Buy a used car with cash from a private seller.
Put down the fake name and fake address on the papers. Show ID if requested. (Or just walk away, saying "Oh, I forgot my ID. Do you really need it?", if so, then just drive off and find someone else.)
Put a fake plate on the vehicle, I'd get this arranged beforehand.
Commit the crime and get away with it. I certainly wouldn't videotape it, lol. And, I wouldn't have the getaway vehicle near the scene of the crime.
Replace with another fake plate.
Get a paint job.
Talking all hypothetically. And, no, I've never thought about it before, lol.
Looks like this site uploaded a copy. http://heavy.com/news/2017/04/stevie-steve-stephens-cleveland-facebook-live-shooting-full-video-unedited-watch/
I guess maybe Heavy is a good alternative to liveleak.
