#firesteel for the win

[reginarubie]

New chapter of KBF~KBS is up!

Go check it out, here, and get wild in the comments or here on Tumblr!

Lord Strong hummed apparently satisfied with her answer “You are much cleverer than you let on, aren’t you?” he commented.

“I beg to disagree,” she said.

(…)

“I enjoyed our chat, my lady ” lord Strong told her

Sansa smiled perfunctory at him “We should try not to make a habit of it,” she said before entering the antechamber.

Also named, the hidden dagger. Sansa stark finally begins to play.

[petermorwood]

More on pre-electricity lighting.

Interesting to see this one pop up again after nearly two years - courtesy of @dduane, too! :->

*****

After experiencing a couple more storm-related power cuts since my original post, as well as a couple of after-dark garden BBQs, I've come to the conclusion that C.J. Cherryh puts far too much emphasis on "how dark things were pre-electric light".

For one thing eyes adjust, dilating in dim light to gather whatever illumination is available. Okay, if there's none, there's none - but if there's some, human eyes can make use of it, some better or just faster than others. They're the ones with "good night vision".

Think, for instance, of how little you can see of your unlit bedroom just after you've turned off the lights, and how much more of it you can see if you wake up a couple of hours later.

There's also that business of feeling your way around, risking breaking your neck etc. People get used to their surroundings and, after a while, can feel their way around a familiar location even in total darkness with a fair amount of confidence.

Problems arise when Things Aren't Where They Should Be (or when New Things Arrive) and is when most trips, stumbles, hacked shins and stubbed toes happen, but usually - Lego bricks and upturned UK plugs aside - non-light domestic navigation is incident-free.

*****

Here are a couple of pics from one of those BBQs: one candle and a firepit early on, then the candle, firepit and an oil lamp much later, all much more obvious than DD's iPad screen.

Though I remain surprised at how well my phonecam was handling this low light, my own unassisted eyes were doing far better. For instance, that area between the table and the firepit wasn't such an impenetrable pool of darkness as it appears in the photo.

I see (hah!) no reason why those same Accustomed Eyes would have any more difficulty with candles or oil lamps as interior lighting, even without the mirrors or reflectors in my previous post.

With those, and with white interior walls, things would be even brighter. There's a reason why so many reconstructed period buildings in Folk Museums etc. are (authentically) whitewashed not just outside but inside as well. It was cheap, had disinfectant qualities, and was a reflective surface. Win, win and win.

*****

All right, there were no switches to turn on a light. But there was no need for what C.J. describes as stumbling about to reach the fire, because there were tinderboxes and, for many centuries before them, flint and steel. Since "firesteels" have been heraldic charges since the 1100s, the actual tool must have been in use for even longer.

Tinderboxes were fire-starter sets with flint, steel and "tinder" all packed into (surprise!) a box. The tinder was easily lit ignition material, often "charcloth", fabric baked in an airtight jar or tin which would now start to glow just from a spark.

They're mentioned in both "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings". Oddly enough, "Hobbit" mentions matches in a couple of places, but I suspect that's a carry-over from when it was just a children's story, not part of the main Legendarium.

Tinderboxes could be simple, just a basic flint-and-steel kit with some tinder for the sparks to fall on...

...or elaborate like this one, with a fancy striker, charcloth, kindling material and even wooden "spills" (long splinters) to transfer flame to a candle or the kindling...

This tinderbox even doubles as a candlestick, complete with a snuffer which would have been inside along with everything else.

Here's a close-up of the striker box with its inner and outer lids open:

What looks like a short pencil with an eraser is actually the striker. A bit of tinder or charcloth would have been pulled through that small hole in the outer lid, which was then closed.

There was a rough steel surface on the lid, and the striker was scraped along it, like so:

This was done for a TV show or film, so the tinder was probably made more flammable with, possibly, lighter fuel. That would be thoroughly appropriate, since a Zippo or similar lighter works on exactly the same principle.

A real-life version of any tinderbox would usually just produce glowing embers needing blown on to make a flame, which is shown sometimes in movies - especially as a will-it-light-or-won't-it? tension build - but is usually a bit slow and non-visual for screen work.

*****

There were even flintlock tinderboxes which worked with the same mechanism as those on firearms. Here's a pocket version:

Here are a couple of bedside versions, once again complete with a candlestick:

And here are three (for home defence?) with a spotlight candle lantern on one side and a double-trigger pistol on the other.

Pull one trigger to light the candle, pull the other trigger to fire the gun.

What could possibly go wrong? :-P

*****

Those pistol lanterns, magnified by lenses, weren't just to let their owner see what they were shooting at: they would also have dazzled whatever miscreant was sneaking around in the dark, irises dilated to make best use of available glimmer.

Swordsmen both good and bad knew this trick too, and various fight manuals taught how to manage a thumb-shuttered lamp encountered suddenly in a dark alley.

There's a sword-and-lantern combat in the 1973 "Three Musketeers" between Michael York (D'Artagnan) and Christopher Lee (Rochefort), which was a great idea.

Unfortunately it failed in execution because the "Hollywood Darkness" which let viewers see the action, wasn't dark enough to emphasise the hazards / advantages of snapping the lamps open and shut.

This TV screencap (can't get a better one, the DVD won't run in a computer drive) shows what I mean.

In fact, like the photos of the BBQ, this image - and entire fight - looks even brighter through "real eyes" than with the phonecam. Just as there can be too much dark in a night scene, there can also be too much light.

*****

One last thing I found when assembling pics for the post were Folding Candle-lanterns.

They were used from about the mid-1700s to the later 20th century (Swiss Army ca. 1978) as travel accessories and emergency equipment, and IMO - I've Made A Note - they'd fit right into a fantasy world whose tech level was able to make them.

The first and last are reproductions: this one is real, from about 1830.

The clear part was mica - a transparent mineral which can be split into thin flexible sheets - while others use horn / parchment, though both of these are translucent rather than transparent. Regardless, all were far less likely to break than glass.

One or two inner surfaces were usually tin, giving the lantern its own built-in reflector, and tech-level-wise, tin as a shiny or decorative finish has been used since Roman times.

I'm pretty sure that top-of-the-line models could also have been finished with their own matching, maybe even built-in, tinderboxes.

And if real ones didn't, fictional ones certainly could. :->

*****

Yet more period lighting stuff here, including flintlock alarm clocks (!)

[onegirlintheback]

@reginarubie @firesteel-eden Teacher AU

Sansa Stark was an English Lit teacher at Winterfell Prepatory School (Win Prep) before the Governors decided some of its faculty and students needed to go to a new school due to overcrowding.

Now she teaches at the Red Keep Academy where the most handsome man Sansa has ever seen, Aemond Targaryen teaches history. Aemond keeps wandering into her classroom, offering treats and a teasing comment in equal measure.

It's going to take all of her resolve and professionalism to not make out with him a supply closet. Did she mention she's been married to him for the past three years?

Aemond doesn't talk about his private life at work. Him and his wife taught at different schools until this term. He had been prepared to see her at work, he hadn't been prepared for how giddy he would be to see her all the time. Gods he loves his wife.

[reginarubie]

Look at how beautiful this piece is! 😍😍😍😍😍

Also I can totally see Aemond sweeping Needle off her feet giving her what she had always wished for. Long strolls in the gardens, watching the stars together 😍😍😍😍😍😍 and the two of them just plotting the demise of everyone planning to hurt their family whilst looking iconic!

Thank you for this amazing piece! @ginger-danica-snapps I feel so blessed by the love this story keeps receiving and how many beautiful works are being made for this couple, also inspired by my story! 😊😊😊🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰

@reginarubie

I seriously can't get this story out of my head. It's just so delicious. When HOTD first hit, the very first fic search I did was to see if we had any Stark centric time travel to the Dance or Green's to the future.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/42831120/chapters/107597763

[reginarubie]

(☝🏻) Me looking left and right to your edits, and seeing this masterpiece basically telling the story of my first two chapters @wolfanddragon98 let me hug you!!!!!

This is amazing! And another amazing song rec for the Firesteel ship!

Now I have to keep the bar up with the plot of the story with your edits! You’re like breathing life into this little side of the fandom!

Firesteel brainrot for the win! 😍😍😍🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰 so blessed right now I can’t even… just giggling like a little girl with a crush!

Okay, so I might have re-read the first two chapters today and as a result this came out. 

Did I already mention how excited I am for chapter 3? :D

[everydaytacticalvids]

The @exotac ripSPOOL. Giveaway is happening on YouTube tonight. Maybe you’ll win one... . . . #exotac #exotacripspool #fire #firestarter #firesteel #edc #ducktape #ducttape #cordage #everydaytacticalvids https://www.instagram.com/p/Bv2RLELBQgb/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=9qv3b18prr4j

[tacticalplatecarriers-blog]

Thrunite TH30 Headlamp & Convertible EDC Light: 3000+ Lumens, Multi-Use, USB Rechargeable

I got it, I tested it, and I like it. The Thrunite TH30 headlamp is going to give you over 3000 lumens of output at the highest setting, but even at around 1000 lumens you'll get over 1.5 hours of run time. The fact that it can convert to an EDC light too - that's a win in my book. A solid light in my use of it so far. Check it out and tell me what you think. Purchase the Thrunite TH30 Headlamp here: https://amzn.to/2Pf5iWx _______ SHOP here and SUPPORT Everyday Tactical Vids (Thanks SO MUCH): http://tinyurl.com/ETV-Amazon-Search ___ MY FAVORITE SURVIVAL KNIVES Mora Light My Fire: http://tinyurl.com/ETV-MoraLMF Benchmade Bushcrafter: http://tinyurl.com/BMadeBC-ETV Ontario Knife RAT 7: http://tinyurl.com/OntRAT7 Tops Knives Brothers of Bushcraft: http://tinyurl.com/TOPSK-BOB MY FAVORITE EDC KNIVES CRKT Squid: http://tinyurl.com/CRKTSQ-ETV Benchmade Griptilian: http://tinyurl.com/BMadeGrip-ETV Spyderco Tencious: http://tinyurl.com/SpydercoTen-ETV CRKT Fossil: http://tinyurl.com/CRKTFossilETV MY FAVORITE FLASHLIGHTS Streamlight Microstream: http://tinyurl.com/StrLightMicroS-ETV Surefire Fury: http://tinyurl.com/SFireFury-ETV Olight S1 Baton: http://tinyurl.com/OlightS1ETV Thrunite Archer 1AV2: http://tinyurl.com/TNiteArcher1AV2 MY FAVORITE SURVIVAL TOOLS Bahco Laplander Saw: http://tinyurl.com/BahcoLLETV Corona Folding Saw: http://tinyurl.com/CoronaFS10-ETV Mechanix Gloves: http://tinyurl.com/MechGlvETV Large Firesteel: http://tinyurl.com/LRGFSTEEL-ETV ___ CONNECT WITH ETV YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/EverydayTacticalVids Twitter - https://twitter.com/EverydayTactic1 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/pages/Everyday-Tactical- Vids/396490423756541 Instagram - http://instagram.com/everyday_tactical_vids/ Tumblr - http://everydaytacticalvids.tumblr.com/ Google+ - http://tinyurl.com/EverydayTacticalVidsGooglePlus ___ Everyday Tactical Vids: Thinking Tactically, Living Purposefully Everyday Tactical Vids exists to help individuals become an asset to self and others in everyday life and crisis situations. ___ PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN AN INFLUENCE ON EVERYDAY TACTICAL VIDS: - Lt. Colonel Dave Grossman, originator of The Sheepdog Concept - Travis Haley of Haley Strategic - Chris Costa of Costa Ludus - The team over at ITS Tactical - NutnFancy and his YouTube channel/community - Tom Brown Jr. of The Tracker School - Dave Canterbury of The Pathfinder School

[eugenehonrath]

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Eugene Honrath (@eugene_honrath)

Practice makes perfect. • Repost from @sosnoproblem using @RepostRegramApp - Fire Starting Challenge • Can you start a fire in under 5 seconds? When is the last time you used your fero rod / fire starter? • Post your video and tag us! You might win a prize. • #fire #firestarter #firestarting #firesteel #firestartingchallenge #survival #survive #warmth #sos #sosx1 #sosnoproblem (at Westchase, Florida) https://www.instagram.com/p/BmQxVf8AsE_/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1pm0tyjgjwbte

[reginarubie]

I discovered your fic yesterday and have already read it all. Aemond/Sansa was something I didn't know I need but I'm glad and now I need more content because I'm sold.

Not a fan of HotD because thanks to the Mad Queen I was against watching the keeping up with the targaryen's drama, specially the fucking Dance of the Dragons, because I knew how it ended and didn't want to suffer for the characters (not in the mood for now, maybe later) but I was reading another of your fics and explored your other works and discovered... this... amazing one?! I mean, I like Aemond and Sansa and the rare pairing has... logic?

Now, I'm curious if you plan to change the history of Westeros or you are going to struggle Sansa "Ned" on this mess, because I know there is a good theory around that House Whent had Targaryen's blood because of a bastard and would fit if you end with Sansa & Aemond's child and make it a circle of the family tree for Sansa? I mean, the Targs are practically adopting her, is she going to try to save them.

Aamzing story, I love how you portray them, I die in every Aemond/Sansa's scene and also when you put Daeron as a good brother, but I love every character loving Sansa.

I'm now fearing for Lord Vance's personality and how he will be with Sansa, specially when he learn about her relationship with Aemond. I live for romantic drama, but I would cry if Sansa's husband make her suffer. I would like him to be a friend of her.

And that kiss in the last scene.... ? 😍😍😍

Ciao nonny!,

Did you binge my entire story in a day? I am tbh astounded and so very happy about it too! Thank you!

Well it is a keep up with the Targs type of story BUT it holds some merits with characters as Alicent, her kids and yep even Rhaenyra because they created interesting dynamics and it is interesting if you ever wanna try at it. But mostly, I too was scared it would be a dragon-queen-exaltation, when it's actually the opposite.

And look... I even commented on it when I watched the first episode (x) I mean you just need to look at this:

And be heartened. The show-runners, GRRM himself and the writers decided to tell everyone from episode 1 that all of Daenerys entitlement was for nothing, and the whole hype about her was misplaced, as she has styled herself as QUEEN OF THE 7K since the end of season 1 (and since the end of AGOT) and yet they consider Aerys as king (as he actually was KING) and Daenerys only as PRINCESS — almost to tell us her whole quest and claim was for naught.

And to top of that they also address the fact that the idea that they control the dragons is nothing but an illusion — said exactly after Rhaenyra, the Daenerys-look-alike, comments on how the dragons make them special and closer to gods than men — and proceeds to show us having Lucerys and Aemond both loose control of their dragons which plummets the Realm into the Dance head-first.

Well I have in mind quite the tortuous path ahead, because it's still a time travel fic and some issues are to be addressed.

Sansa wants to keep those who are her ancestors alive

Sansa would like to know more about Jon's mother so that she could ensure his ancestors, those which differ from hers, are kept safe thus resulting in his survival — girl is unaware he is a Targaryen and descends from Viserys, son of Rhaenyra and Daemon

Sansa is set to change the path of the Realm to ensure the North is stronger and has the means to survive against winter

what will happen to her original timeline?

will she stay in this timeline?

will the Old Gods and Bran make another appearance?

How will she cope with the rest of her life, will her mission ever end.

how will the changes she make change the future?

It ain't a walk in the park, that much is clear.

Happy you love the Aemond/Sansa scenes and the other characters as well, also well the romantic drama is part of the whole deal I am afraid but who knows in which way it will develop?

Thank you for dropping by to show your love for the story! As always sending all my love ~G.

[kpher-blog]

Powertac Lance Flashlight: 1 Or 2 AA Power, 290 Lumens for EDC (Everyday Carry)

The Powertac Lance is a solid EDC light giving you almost 300 lumens of output. The cool thing is that you can use this with 1 AA battery or 2 AA batteries - this is a win in my mind. How does it compare to the Streamlight Stylus Pro USB - not sure, but I think I'll compare the 2 of them in the future. At around $45 it ain't cheap, but it seems to be nicely made. Check it out! Purchase the Powertac Lance here: https://amzn.to/2MYPkhS SHOP here and SUPPORT Everyday Tactical Vids (Thanks SO MUCH): http://tinyurl.com/ETV-Amazon-Search ___ MY FAVORITE SURVIVAL KNIVES Mora Light My Fire: http://tinyurl.com/ETV-MoraLMF Benchmade Bushcrafter: http://tinyurl.com/BMadeBC-ETV Ontario Knife RAT 7: http://tinyurl.com/OntRAT7 Tops Knives Brothers of Bushcraft: http://tinyurl.com/TOPSK-BOB MY FAVORITE EDC KNIVES CRKT Squid: http://tinyurl.com/CRKTSQ-ETV Benchmade Griptilian: http://tinyurl.com/BMadeGrip-ETV Spyderco Tencious: http://tinyurl.com/SpydercoTen-ETV CRKT Fossil: http://tinyurl.com/CRKTFossilETV MY FAVORITE FLASHLIGHTS Streamlight Microstream: http://tinyurl.com/StrLightMicroS-ETV Surefire Fury: http://tinyurl.com/SFireFury-ETV Olight S1 Baton: http://tinyurl.com/OlightS1ETV Thrunite Archer 1AV2: http://tinyurl.com/TNiteArcher1AV2 MY FAVORITE SURVIVAL TOOLS Bahco Laplander Saw: http://tinyurl.com/BahcoLLETV Corona Folding Saw: http://tinyurl.com/CoronaFS10-ETV Mechanix Gloves: http://tinyurl.com/MechGlvETV Large Firesteel: http://tinyurl.com/LRGFSTEEL-ETV ___ CONNECT WITH ETV YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/EverydayTacticalVids Twitter - https://twitter.com/EverydayTactic1 Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/pages/Everyday-Tactical- Vids/396490423756541 Instagram - http://instagram.com/everyday_tactical_vids/ Tumblr - http://everydaytacticalvids.tumblr.com/ Google+ - http://tinyurl.com/EverydayTacticalVidsGooglePlus ___ Everyday Tactical Vids: Thinking Tactically, Living Purposefully Everyday Tactical Vids exists to help individuals become an asset to self and others in everyday life and crisis situations. ___ PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN AN INFLUENCE ON EVERYDAY TACTICAL VIDS: - Lt. Colonel Dave Grossman, originator of The Sheepdog Concept - Travis Haley of Haley Strategic - Chris Costa of Costa Ludus - The team over at ITS Tactical - NutnFancy and his YouTube channel/community - Tom Brown Jr. of The Tracker School - Dave Canterbury of The Pathfinder School

[rusticrevivals]

Regular Readers may remember the story of the “Lucy” of Lucy’s Gulch, the admirable mid-wife who climbed a mountain path straight up into New Denmark every time a woman needed help with her birthing time.  Nonetheless, as explained previously, Lucy was considered the ‘2nd wife’ of her sister’s husband.  Each of the two sisters had their own house within 20 ft of each other, and the husband/brother-in-law travelled back and forth between the two, having had children by both women.  Pictures and story here:

https://bluebellmountainblog.wordpress.com/2016/03/26/fact-or-folk-lore-lucys-gulch

I got that out in the first paragraph, right away, because I don’t want anyone thinking I am now being ‘kept’ by my own sister’s husband.  Boyd did, however, invite me to tea in some of the many ‘shacks’ he’s built himself out of reclaimed materials, and as he is as adamantly eco-friendly as we are trying to be here (though Newfoundland is MUCH more ahead of the game in the recycling/reusing/ and making less of a carbon footprint than New Brunswick!) I thought it important to feature Boyd and his work/thoughts/ideas in this particular posting.

Mom/Joy and I spent the last week in St. John’s, Newfoundland. For those of you not familiar with our Maritime provinces, my sister has lived out there ‘on the Rock’, for about 25 years, while Richard’s BROTHER and mother live three hours away in Saint John (no ‘s’ on the end is the only difference when pronouncing).  They’ve been there for about 20 years, and are one of the reasons we moved to THIS province.  We went to St. John’s for a superlative concert put on by the Atlantic Boychoir, in which my nephew sings, and they were joined by the Grammy-and-Emmy-award-winning King’s Singers, from Cambridge, England.  On top of which my eleven-year-old nephew Sydney also played a ‘cello solo during this concert in the 2500-capacity, 160-year-old cathedral. So it was well worth burning up the air-miles and two days of travel time (even though they are so close geographically, it takes LONGER to get there from here, than from Toronto!) to hear the boy bring the house down at the end of his astonishingly professional with his choir.

This entire blog, however, is primarily supposed to be about trying to live self-sufficiently off the land, and about other rural goings-on in a community still clinging to the traditions of old. So I’m not about to expound further upon the particular virtues of that most-amazing event, but will simply get on with how I ‘shacked up with my brother-in-law’.

First of all, my brother-in-law Harold Boyd, is not what you’d expect from an accountant of many years, nor a staunch supporter of environmental issues.  He IS possibly, what some might expect of a native Newfoundlander, with the exception that he and my sister were the first to own an electric car (Toyota Prius) on the island.  Here he is about to drive it silently into the night:

Boyd has previously been mentioned in this blog when he and Richard spent some time this summer here at Blue Belldon, fending off bees as they moved the compost containers closer to the garden.  Having a family farm on the other side of the island (8 hours drive) but being happily ensconced in suburbanville in St. John’s has not deterred dear brother-in-law from setting up his back-yard like a scene from BBC’s The Good Life (also previously mentioned – and worth watching for anyone dreaming of that ‘off-the-grid’ life, but having no land to speak of:

First of all, Boyd and Jennifer have taken down the stereotypical suburban fencing that one finds surrounding most homes in ‘The Burbs’, and encourage all the neighbourhood children and pets to make a walking path, much like one would find in England and Europe.  Behind their house is a ‘green space’, which then leads to various community buildings (school, hall, churches, etc).  Boyd is adamant that Sydney walk to school most days even through deep snow, and tries by example to instigate others to do the same, thus taking a little journey through their farm-like back-yard and into the green space, which certainly cuts off at least 10 minutes of what it would be to walk via the roadways, not to mention opening up an entire ‘nature walk’ along the way.

For Boyd feeds the birds:

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Above, Boyd putting out two different suet blocks in his yard, one being ‘high energy’ to attract the bigger birds.  He climbs a ladder to put one of these up, to detract cats (esp. his own) from climbing.  And here he is filling all his bird-feeders with seed – he even puts perches out for the little beasts – ‘so they can queue up and wait their turn’!

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Boyd has built all the sheds, greenhouses, and raised gardens thus far in their yard, and has plans to continue expanding the garden portion (as well as tending garden in the summer months out on the ‘west coast’ of the island near Cartyville, where his mother still resides).

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Above, Boyd even has a burn pile, like we do here on the farm, although admittedly he can’t burn in the city limits.  See also, the fence he’s removed so that the green space behind it is open to everyone from the front.

Next, we go into Boyd’s favourite ‘shack’.  This is his self-made observatory (for the birds as well as the nature-enjoying neighbours).  Of course, ALL Boyd’s shacks are made from recycled/reclaimed materials.  The windows that make up most of this one were partly garnered from being found at the end of someone’s drive, and partly by patio doors for which his brother no longer had a use:

In this ‘observatory’, Boyd can enjoy the peace of his own mini-farm, watch the birds he is feeding and enjoy a cup of tea with the Kelly Kettle my sister bought for him, which he’s set up on an unused stainless steel garbage can. It doesn’t heat the room, but it DOES keep one busy and warms the hands whilst doing so.  And of course, Boyd does have plans for a larger stove in this shack’s future.

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Boyd also enjoyed putting out these large “Christmas lights” so that he could stand in the house and enjoy looking at them all season, knowing they are being run  by the solar panel he has on top of his sheds.  (When solar panels are no longer quite so expensive, he and Jennifer hope to run their Prius completely from the sun’s rays – we should ALL be looking to doing this, and thus neither electric vehicles NOR solar panels should be so ridiculously inflated in price… but don’t get me started on that right now!)

Boyd then pulls out his ‘survival kit’ (a pouch of dryer lint, shredded paper and an assortment of wood bits for small kindling).  He also proudly shows me a Lee Valley Swedish Firesteel which is impervious to all weather conditions and offers long-lasting sparks to start any fire:

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So, after crumpling in the bits of paper and lint into the bottom of the Kelly Kettle, and after having moved the ‘stovepipe’, he fills the kettle with water (which surrounds the inner heating section) and then keeps feeding the stove constantly, now with twigs from his burn pile in the back corner, a heap of which he is letting dry in a corner of the shed.

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And after only about 7 minutes – voila!  He pours us each a cup of lovely hot tea!

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Next, we wait to see what neighbourhood children and wildlife will begin to discover the joys of Boyd’s Ebullient Acres. To help the process along a little, Boyd pulls out his bird-caller:

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and we are ready with a full chart of Maritime birds posted on the shack’s wall.

It’s not very moments before one tree is full of juncos and a large flicker is tapping away at the suet block:

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Without the snow on the roof, Boyd even can enjoy looking out through the ceiling, as he’s added a long window above for bird or moon/star-gazing:

Although he didn’t set it up this winter, Boyd has experimented with hydroponic growing systems, which Richard hopes to do soon as well (right now we just have some lettuce growing in earth in the seed tables in the basement – set up for this was detailed here: https://bluebellmountainblog.wordpress.com/2017/03/21/blue-belldon-basement-grow-op/  and had the 2nd-largest reading of any of my blog postings, so there must be an interest for inside growing techniques during long winter months!)

For more on Boyd’s type of hydroponics using PVC, see this:

https://ca.video.search.yahoo.com/yhs/search;_ylt=A0LEVrg4CmpajOYA1swXFwx.?p=hydroponics+with+pvc&fr=yhs-iba-1&fr2=piv-web&hspart=iba&hsimp=yhs-1&type=mchm_6047_CHW_CA#id=3&vid=5e2a6d8bf41fafd6b1722e877280d031&action=view

Boyd has this sitting in his shed, so it made me curious to investigate more:

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While I enjoyed watching the birds with Boyd, using camera, binoculars and my distance specs,  my vision was frequently impaired by the Coke-bottle eyeglasses my nephew caused me to wear several times – once when we were playing ‘spy’ and deciphering codes, and another time when I threatened to dress up as crazy “Eco-Aunt” and go to his aikido classes if he didn’t behave.   Eco-Aunt doesn’t waste water on hair-washing or bathing, applies makeup only using natural products, and wears only natural hair ornaments (feathers and wooden clothespins, etc). Once he saw me like this, Sydney decided to behave extraordinarily well, but I am thinking of offering Eco-Aunt as a main character to all marches for environmental issues. What do you think – is she memorable?

Shacking Up with Brother-in-Law Regular Readers may remember the story of the "Lucy" of Lucy's Gulch, the admirable mid-wife who climbed a mountain path straight up into New Denmark every time a woman needed help with her birthing time. 

[mendooutdoors]

New Post has been published on Men Do Outdoors

New Post has been published on http://mendooutdoors.com/?p=1144

Nicander (Bushcraft) - Featured Profile

It’s not very often that I get to meet someone as passionate about the outdoors as Nicander. A man specializing in Bushcraft who is oozing with the dream to learn and explore as much as he possibly can from nature itself.

On his journey, he has shared his learning’s and passion. You can see them in the numerous video’s he has on his Youtube channels and pictures he shares on Instagram.

He is very generous with his information and even in this interview, you can tell he wasn’t really holding back. So without further a due let’s jump right into the questions.

Tell us a little about yourself:

Hi, I’m Nicander, on social media Bushcraft Nic. I love to be outdoors and live as primitive as I can. I love to explore nature and see, feel and taste all it has to offer. Loving every season, especially autumn and winter. I love to challenge myself to practice bushcraft techniques in the hardest conditions. It feeds my creativity and boosts my energy. I learn the most when I challenge myself!

What’s your age:

31

Where were you born?

I was born in the Netherlands

What Outdoor Activity do you do?

I love several outdoor activities. These are most of all Bushcraft (kind of survival), cycling to far places, snowboarding and searching for food in the wild.

Who is your greatest inspiration?

My greatest inspiration is Ray Mears.

His series might be slow to some people but I can’t imagine another show which has taught me so many skills as he did! And I admire his way of coöperating with nature instead of fighting against it!

What inspired you to take up?

When a colleague asked me to come along with a mid-winter-bivouac, I went along. It was a quite impulsive action to join him in a bivouac with outdoor temperatures of -5,8F°/ -21C° but it turned out to be the best decision ever!

As soon as we arrived in the snowy and cold forest we had to work to keep ourselves warm. I quickly learned some basic bushcraft and survival skills like ‘leave no trace’, the easiest knots to tie and to untie (very important), how to make a fire with a firesteel and stuff like camp-hygiene and camp-order.

I loved to experience the forest in this way, I suddenly saw opportunities for usage of simple materials in everything around me. Besides that, experiencing the fresh air, the temperature, sounds, and smells. This got even better because we did not sleep in a tent but under a tarp in the open air.

Unfortunately, all this stood out to the quality of my gear. My sleeping bag was made for 32-50°F/ 0-10°C, in extreme cases it could be used till 14°F/ -10°C.

Additionally, my mat was not prepared for these temperatures so sleeping was not the case. It was a night of shivering, twisting and turning till I was sick of it at 5 AM and decided there should be a fire started real soon!

I took a firesteel and collected some bark to spark on. With the skills, I learned the night before I started to flint while the others were still sleeping.

“YES!!!” Success at the 3rd strike! The bark started to burn and small wood could be added to the fire.

The warmth of the fire slowly started to win over from the cold frozen air and my cold body started to revive. It felt so intense to be able to create warmth with such a small amount of effort and natural resources which are provided everywhere in nature.

This moment changed my life! I wanted to do this as much as possible. My passion for bushcraft had begun.

Next spring I’ve bought some gear (which is sold everywhere in all price ranges) and started enjoying nature from this new point of perspective. Since then I’m hooked!

When did you take up?

About 8 years ago

How often do you participate in the activity?

Every month several days

What’s your favorite trick?

I love to make fire from a spark. Even better when it is fully raining! It is so beautiful to focus on the just started flame and to nourish it till it is strong and warming you up.

What’s your favorite gear?

I have a lot of favorite gear. From the section ‘DIY’ it will be my self-made bucksaw.

From the section ‘bought material,’ it will be my Fjällräven Kajka backpack which is really bad-ass good with all its functionalities and I do also love my Gransforsk small forest axe. It has a perfect weight and size to fit in the backpack, still a good size to cut trees and it remains sharp forever before it has to be sharpened again.

  What are you striving towards in the future?

I would love to join the upcoming Fjällräven Polar expedition (where I still need votes for). And in the future, I would love to do courses for people to connect with nature. Hopefully creating awareness of the beauty but also vulnerability.

Make sure to support him  by voting for him here http://polar.fjallraven.com/contestant/?id=59&backpage=1&order=popular

It will only take a minute but will mean so much to him.

If someone would be interested in doing bushcraft, what would you recommend they do?

Start a fire with a fire steel on birchbark.

  This young man is 100% in line with what Men Do Outdoors is out to promote. The incredible playground we have at our doorstep. Nature, and that is why he was selected as Mendooutdoors Featured Profile. Make sure to follow him on his journey and vote for him so that he can continue his journey on the upcoming Fjällräven Polar expedition.

        Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bushcraftnic/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/bushcraft%20nic

Website:

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[thecoroutfitters]

Written by theprepperjournal on The Prepper Journal.

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[echo-sierra-actual-blog]

#Repost @subversivecivilian with @repostapp ・・・ So here's the loot for the giveaway. Carbon fiber ventilator pen, 5 piece Southord starter set with leather slip, G10 "lapel" knife, carbon steel kiridashi, Kevlar cord, kilt pin with attached mini light stick, 10 mini light sticks, stash tube with glow stick, stash tube filled with GITD material, Shlage bump key, master lock bump key, large bobby pin for shimming, ultra thin key shim, polymer handcuff key, S&W handcuff key, 3 tungsten carbide striker beads, and a firesteel toggle. To enter simply be a follower and make a post with the tag #subversivecivilian it can even be a repost of this one. I will pick a winner at random from the tags Saturday. Also as you can see there are no bags or containers to keep all this in so if you win make sure to check out @lawindustries for nylon gear to hold the loot in. Their stash its, ewok's, and wallets make some great ways to hold gear. #staydangerous #stabbyshit #lockpick #locksport #alwayshaveanescapeplan #secretsquirelshit #subversivecivilian (at East Harlem)

[reginarubie]

I could dm you about this but I guess this topic deserves to be brought up publicly. Apparently you are the first writer I came across who made a focus on Aemond's chronic pains caused by the trauma (in fact, he's a disabled person and it upsets me how everyone seems to ignore this aspect). Of course, he could be so stressed after facing Rhaenyra but I view it a bit differently and still wanna thank you 🌼

Ciao Anne!, (@wildfieldz)

This is so sweet, thank you!, You're gonna make me blush!

I was talking about this matter with @maddiethefashionista when I was working on the chapter, as she's my support system and helps give me confidence when I need a boost of it.

I don't understand why the show never showed us the consequences of what these people faced not only emotionally but also physically (they failed utterly on both things tbh). The books do, though I still feel like all the rest takes the precedence over the emotional and physical trauma these people endure; which is what happens in real life and what ends up creating even more trauma and problems.

One of the reasons why I love Sansa so much is that she's solid, despite all the trauma (physical and emotional) she endures she still remains true to herself, she still steps up, steps out in the snow field and still she cares for her cousin like she cared for Bran and her siblings, she still let herself be held and never rejects touch, she never rejects emotionally anyone, she offers herself and still wears her heart on her sleeve as a conscious decision and faces the consequences. Bran is the same, he never folds to his own disability — he is Bran the Broken, but he is also the heir to Winterfell and to Robb's crown, the prince of Winterfell and he remembers both in the same breath, that's endurance. That's the kind of resilience people have and I would've liked to see it more in the show as well — but I digress.

Aemond is a disabled person who worked his ass off to be as efficient and proficient as an able-bodied person (despite his missing eye he becomes a great swordsman; he studies and acquires the competence to lead and to understand the world around him despite his young age and remains loyal to his brother) but still a disabled person he is. He adorned his eye to put something beautiful to cover the marring of his eye, but you can't convince me that didn't have consequences (we're always talking of a gem put inside an empty eye-socket) on top of the consequences people who lost their eye suffer through.

It's human of him to suffer from migraines and also Aemond of him to shoulder through them with gritted teeth. You chose to read it exactly how I wrote it.

There's a reason I keep putting emphasis over Sansa's knees bothering her and her joints having become more fragile after what she endured — the rationing and the almost frostbite — and putting emphasis over Aemond's eye bothering him, the phantom pain of it and the migraines that come from it as well.

I'm not a doctor so I don't know if the symptoms I have described are actually ascribable to the pathology (having lost an eye or almost dying of frostbite) but I've tried to put emphasis over the fact that these people are still human, they get worked up and their health acts up not only as a result from the stress but also of the trauma they endured. But I've seen people living with the consequences of their physical traumas other than emotional so I think that's an aspect that gives depth and truthfulness to the story so thank you for remarking on it.

As always sending all my love ~G.

[reginarubie]

Hi! Not a question, just some thoughts... you created such amazing tension and dilemmas with the whole Sansa's legitimacy subplot. The way she avoided an unwanted marriage with Larys was clever, but now she's (sort of) engaged to Symon Vance... and, thanks to your last chapter and side story, we all know that Aemond and Sansa not simply... ahem... good friends. And this leads to a new level of drama, as they can't do what they clearly want (doesn't Aemond despise Rhaenyra for her following her desires?), and I can't wait to see how it unfolds!

Thank you!

Ciao @thegirlwhohid!,

happy you enjoyed the drama! I added for it to be plausible and truly at some point Aemond/Sansa was bound to explode, and I loved making it so that it's our girl the one to actually make the first move after kisses have been imparted on her, forced on her since she left home.

She not anymore fighting for survival, she's fighting for her place, for her House' survival and for making sure that the people she's met on the way survive as well.

Ahhhhh dear old Symon, will you bring more drama, less drama or start to stir shit up?

Thank you for showing your love for the fic and dropping by! I know I don't always respond under the fic in the comment section because tbh I really can't keep track of all, but seeing you all going out of your way to show your appreciation for the story really heartens me! Thank you!

As always sending all my love ~G.