From LC Brendan at the Emperor's site comes this missive which simply must be read if you believe that you have the right to protect yourself. If you don't believe that, well, I hope that all is well in the land of pixies and fairies which you currently inhabit. Just hope that the goblins don't come out after dark.

Entire article is included below the fold, owing to its length.

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Posted by: Physics Geek at 07:21 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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All you need is a can of Coke and a chocolate bar. Oh, and something to set fire to.

I'm more of a gallon of gasoline and a Spaceballs- the Flamethrower- sort of a guy, but whatever gets you going.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 12:00 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Ever lock your keys in the car? You fight with the whole coathanger thing to try and jimmy the lock open and sometimes you have to bite the bullet and call AAA.

Okay, no guy would actually call AAA. You know it and I know it. Anyway.

It turns out that some clever woman has come up with a novel use for the tennis ball on the end of your car's antenna. Check out this video:

Blondie Unlocks Car - video powered by Metacafe

For the record, my mother used to lock her keys inside her car about twice a year. I bugged her to get one of those Hide-A-Key things and she promptly locked that inside the car with her keyring. This technique would have proven quite useful to her, except I'm convinced that she would have locked the tennis ball inside the car, too.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 07:56 AM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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But it is kind of cool the lengths some people will go to so as to avoid government intrusion.

"Get your government ID here! Extra cheap. Smoking! Non-smoking... who are we kidding? No one is allowed to smoke anymore. Get your ID here!"

Posted by: Physics Geek at 12:00 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I've written in the past about using alternative energy sources. If you're truly interested in becoming even less reliant on your local utility, or if you're thinking about building a get-away-from-it-all house, then you might be interested in the information contained in this article at Backwoods Home. Excerpt:

Typical electrical loads

People tend to think that a small house will require less electricity than a large house, so a cabin would use even less. However, if we omit space heating and cooling, we will usually find about the same number of kitchen appliances, the same clothes washer and dryer, the same audio/video equipment, and the same mix of smaller devices like phone chargers and computer games. Although a larger home will certainly require more lighting, this does not necessarily mean they all are operating during a typical day. In other words, itÂ’s not how many square feet in your home or cabin that matters, itÂ’s the amount of electrical devices you plan to operate and for how long that determines your power requirements.

Replacing all incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent lamps is mandatory for off-grid systems. These lamps are now available in many different styles.

LetÂ’s review your absolute minimum power requirements, assuming you do intend to have a few creature comforts. For anything less than the following list you may as well just pitch a tent!

First, you will need at least one light fixture in each room, and one fixture at any exterior door or deck. A 15-watt compact fluorescent ceiling fixture or table lamp should do just fine for most rooms, but you will want more lighting in the kitchen and dining areas. A really basic small cabin lighting system usually consists of 12-volt DC lighting fixtures typically sold for the RV and boating industry, powered from a 12-volt deep-discharge marine battery. However, low-cost DC to AC inverters are becoming so reliable and efficient that you could utilize normal 120-volt AC wiring and appliances, which are usually less expensive than specialized DC devices and are available in more varieties.

Selecting your kitchen appliances requires more effort since they usually consume much more power than light fixtures. First, you will want to avoid anything that includes an electric heating element. This means that toaster ovens, electric hot plates, electric hot water heaters, electric space heaters, electric drip coffee makers, and electric kitchen ranges are out. A small microwave oven is acceptable since they usually only operate a few minutes per cooking task, which is not a major drain for most back-up power systems. Actual battery and inverter sizing recommendations will be addressed in Part II of this article.

Lots more useful information to be found. There will be a Part II article in the very near future. Stay tuned.

Posted by: Physics Geek at 07:19 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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