A little over a month ago, with virtually NO experience whatsoever, I started the solo process of stripping and re-staining the deck of the Cul De Sac Shack and quickly gave up.
Archive | Random
Nearing The End and The Start
June is done. Thank the dogs above!
The Upsell
Since I started the Hell’s Deck Project, I’ve been spending more and more time on the front porch of the Cul De Sac Shack. Mostly to keep Jake (The Dog) and Lola from wanting to be on the deck, which is currently a war zone of chemical stripper residue, dust, and odd smells, not to mention the deck gets the afternoon sun, which has been blazing hot recently. In other words, “too hot for bulldogs!”
Streaming in 2026
OK in The End
So, close, yet so far away. Well, at least until Wednesday morning.
Music, Bikes, and Blown Pipes
It’s been ages since my last post, and I’d like to say that is because I’m out there living my best life with no time for this digital fish wrap. However, since even writing “living my best life” fills me with embarrassment and dread, we can probably assume I was not.
Lockdown Pickups
Sometimes life comes at you fast. One minute you’re hiking along cussing a trail packed with ice that refuses to melt despite the 40˚ daytime temps, and 12 hours later, you get word your kid needs to hunker down in his dorm room with the lights off because there is an active shooter at large on campus.
Dogs, Hawks, and Chats
As we enter the second half of January, things remain dark, dank, repetitious, dark, and dank. Except for last Saturday, when the Weather Dogs actually blessed mid-Michigan with our first day of sunshine in 2023, 14 days into the new year. Of course, roughly 24 hours later, it was gone, and Dankuary continues on.
The Unforgiven
In August, I wanted to start putting together hikes in the 5+ mile range and aim to do them at least four times a week. I thought it would fill a void between pointlessly “walking” on the Dreadmill and pushing myself physically like I do/did when mountain biking, all the while being in the woods with my camera. And I was right; it allowed all of that. However, forcing my more-out-of-shape-than-I-care-to-admit self to jump right into 5-mile hikes in the woods during the heat of August was not the best idea; my back paid the price, and I experienced multiple painful back spasms during those hikes.
Lightening & Fungus
I usually try to get to the gym on Monday to lift heavy things for no reason and lumber on the treadmill; however, the weather was so perfect this past Monday that I just couldn’t bring myself to spend it inside Dysmorphic’s Gym™. So I headed to Deerfield Park for a hike/photo creep in the woods.