Campfire Chili Dinner

Campfire Chili Dinner

Until recently, I seldom used a tripod for anything more than boiling water. Why go to the effort to make a tripod when you can cook directly over the coals? But I have come to appreciate the heat control a tripod affords. You can hang your pot high over a flaming...
Birthday Furlough Camp

Birthday Furlough Camp

  My corporate overlords asked for volunteers for a one-week furlough as part of their pandemic austerity measures. I was not sure I was in a better place financially to take the hit than they were, but I was certain I could put the time off to good use, so I...
Out in the Midday Sun

Out in the Midday Sun

The Gifford Pinchot National Forest is a magical place. Elk, deer, bears, and cougars wander through the tall trees and berry fields. Caves and outcroppings of weirdly contorted lava dot the landscape.                 During...
Denial

Denial

I like my job. It is work that needs doing and I enjoy doing it. I have worked through several public health crises; I was a lab tech and phlebotomist through more than one hepatitis outbreak. I was working when AIDS first began to blossom, before we really knew...
Beer Bandoleer

Beer Bandoleer

Carhartt 276100 – 6 Pack Beverage Sling – essential summer equipment. Brown polyester exterior, with an adjustable web carry strap and silver insulated inside, the bandoleer fits six cans of beer. We were out for 4 hours in 95 degree(35c) heat. The beer...
Cornbread and Blackberries

Cornbread and Blackberries

  I enjoyed a relaxing morning, another day off, due to The Contagion, with Dutch oven cornbread and fresh blackberries for breakfast. The cornbread was left over from a recent camping trip; the blackberries were picked this morning. I tarted it up with butter,...