Living off grid or less on the grid. Doing more with less. Being prepared for further economic downturn. Nomadic lifestyles. Living small or smaller. Enjoying life without money or with less money. Reading books and e-books. Alternative energy. Some of the topics this blog will cover.
Rocket stoves are highly efficient, easy to construct, and can be easily made from many materials. All the basic principles, and the design of the rocket stove are illustrated in the diagram above. A well built rocket stove produces very little smoke due to complete combustion of the fuel. This more complete combustion means that less fuel is needed to produce more heat.
The rocket stove was designed by Dr. Larry Winiarski of the Aprovecho Research Institute. Many rocket stoves are made from 5 gal steel cans with sections of 4 inch stove pipe used to create the combustion chamber and chimney. The remaining interior of the stove is usually filled with ash or vermiculite for insulation.
Here is a video of Dr. Winiarski making a rocket stove from 16 adobe bricks in Mexico.
Commercially produced rocket stoves are available in two versions, a one door for sticks or a two door for sticks or charcoal, from StoveTec. StoveTec is a division of Aprovecho Research Institute so these stoves conform to the designs principles laid out by the Institute. I prefer the two door stove. The increased functionality is well worth the few dollar extra in retail cost.
A video ,from StoveTec, of the two door stove in operation is included below.
The design principles incorporated into the rocket stove can be utilized in more complex cooking or heating designs. A good overview of the principles can be found in the booklet referenced below.
"This document was developed by Aprovecho Research Center under a grant from the Shell Foundation to provide technical support to household energy and health projects to ensure that their designs represent technical best practice. The principle authors of this booklet include: Dr. Mark Bryden, Dean Still, Peter Scott, Geoff Hoffa, Damon Ogle, Rob Balis, and Ken Goyer."
A good friend pointed me toward this series of video's from Good magazine. Each video in the series runs between 5 to 9 minutes. The clips have been embedded via Link TV
"On the 'top' is a photograph of Muir Glacier taken on August 13, 1941, by glaciologist William O. Field; on the 'bottom', a photograph taken from the same vantage on August 31, 2004, by geologist Bruce F. Molnia of the United States Geological Survey (USGS).
According to Molnia, between 1941 and 2004 the glacier retreated more than twelve kilometers (seven miles) and thinned by more than 800 meters (875 yards).
Ocean water has filled the valley, replacing the ice of Muir Glacier; the end of the glacier has retreated out of the field of view. The glacier’s absence reveals scars where glacier ice once scraped high up against the hillside. In 2004, trees and shrubs grow thickly in the foreground, where in 1941 there was only bare rock." http://nsidc.org/data/glacier_photo/special_high_res_muir.html
Climate change can best be understood as increased energy in the earth's overall atmosphere. While this means warming in the overall planet average many places may actually experience temperature drops due to the complex nature of global weather patterns. Climate change will disrupt rainfall amounts, ocean currents, air flow patterns and more. It can be hard to predict the change on a local geographic region due to the many factors involved.
Overall, storm frequency and intensity will increase. Plant growing zones will fluctuate. Insects and diseases spread by them will migrate. Environmental constraints on invasive species will be changed. All of these phenomena have all ready taken place to some degree and will increase as climate change increases.
Preserving and stocking food is an important precaution, even when one is not facing global change it is prudent to be prepared in this area. Food self production and independence could become an important factor in ones survival. Understanding and identification of changes in local flora and fauna will become a more valuable skill. Water caching and collection are important topics to understand. Storm shelters will become more important. Flooding and mudslides require a more careful selection and knowledge of local terrain. Changing one's lifestyle to require fewer things, and to produce more of the things one needs, is beneficial not only to one's personal survival but, as more people adopt this outlook, to the survival of the planet.
Most of these precautions, although mentioned briefly here, have been or will be covered in more detail in the posts of this blog. A good way to get ahead of the curve is to educate oneself on the effects and consequences of climate change. A web search will provide a plethora of information on the subject. A good place to start to find regional, as well as global, information is from the two links provided below.
"The Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change is the leading body for the assessment of climate change, established by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) to provide the world with a clear scientific view on the current state of climate change and its potential environmental and socio-economic consequences." http://www.ipcc.ch/organization/organization.htm
"The U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) coordinates and integrates federal research on changes in the global environment and their implications for society. The USGCRP began as a presidential initiative in 1989 and was mandated by Congress in the Global Change Research Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-606), which called for "a comprehensive and integrated United States research program which will assist the Nation and the world to understand, assess, predict, and respond to human-induced and natural processes of global change." http://www.globalchange.gov/publications/reports/scientific-assessments/us-impacts/download-the-report
"In such a soil grew Homer and Confucius and the rest, and out of such a wilderness comes the Reformer eating locusts and wild honey." Walking by Henry David Thoreau
"Night falls, the stars wink, and after an hour, Suelo tramps up the cliff, mimicking a raven's call—his salutation—a guttural, high-pitched caw. He's lanky and tan; yesterday he rebuilt the entrance to his cave, hauling huge rocks to make a staircase. His hands are black with dirt, and his hair, which is going gray, looks like a bird's nest, full of dust and twigs from scrambling in the underbrush on the canyon floor. Grinning, he presents the booty from one of his weekly rituals, scavenging on the streets of Moab: a wool hat and gloves, a winter jacket, and a white nylon belt, still wrapped in plastic, along with Carhartt pants and sandals, which he's wearing. He's also scrounged cans of tuna and turkey Spam and a honeycomb candle. All in all, a nice haul from the waste product of America"
"Soon smoke billows into the night and the cave is warm. I think of how John the Baptist survived on honey and locusts in the desert. Suelo, who keeps a copy of the Bible for bedtime reading, is satisfied with a few grasshoppers fried in his skillet."
Suelo is a 21st century philosopher. He has lived without money since 2000. He is 48 yrs. old and usually can be found in the summer months living in a cave in Utah. Listen to the following BBC interview with Suelo.
There is a short documentary on Suelo at one of his friends sites. Just click on the link Documentary under "Moneyless In Moab (2006)" http://www.everythingahead.com/watch.html
The Money Masters - How International Bankers Gained Control of America
This is a 3 hr. 35 min. documentary. I can't say I agree with all the political views presented in the video. It is, however, very educational and enlightening. This piece needs to be viewed by every citizen to help them make informed decisions. After you watch the documentary come back here and continue below.
Did you think that was a fact rich, highly informative documentary? The information can be somewhat overwhelming. To help counter balance that info and help maintain that all important positive outlook one should watch the following short video.
Peace Pilgrim was an amazing woman willing to put her convictions to the test. Even those who don't agree with her philosophy have to admire her for her perseverance and fortitude. The hour long documentary and her book say more about the woman who chose a "path less taken" than I can, so without further ado.
"This hour-long documentary presents an overview of Peace Pilgrim's life and work. We hope you enjoy an benefit from its message.
“Little people of the world, let us never feel helpless again. Let us remember that if enough of us ask together even very big things like world disarmament and world peace will be granted. Let's ask together!”
Peace Pilgrim: Her Life and Works in Her Own Words - Pg. 124
Map of U.S. public lands: Bureau of Land Management, Forest Servicd, Bureau of Indian Affairs, National Parks Service.
National Atlas of the United States has a nice online interactive atlas that can be used, among other searches, for viewing maps of federal, or as i prefer to call it public, lands in the U. S..
In the map key you will find that BLM land is represented in yellow. This map represents blocks of land that are 640 acres or more in size.
Viewing the map is the best means of visualizing the enormous amount of federal lands existing in the country.
BLM land exists in many of the western states. It is ok to camp or boondock on most BLM land. In theory there is a 14 day camping limit for one spot then one must move at least 25 miles to another spot. In practice, in the more secluded areas, there is no one counting.
Recreation.gov
"Recreation One-Stop is one of the E-Government initiatives in the President's Management Agenda to improve the effectiveness, efficiency, and customer service of the recreation programs.
The Recreation One-Stop initiative is intended to enhance customer satisfaction with recreational experiences on public lands. It will improve access to recreation-related information generated by the Federal government, streamline the systems used to manage that information, and increase the sharing of recreation-related information among government and non-government organizations. The investment will include the procurement of a new contract to integrate the separate National Park Reservation Service and National Reservation Recreation Service with the Recreation.gov website. "
"The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) was established in 1946 through the consolidation of the General Land Office (created in 1812) and the U.S. Grazing Service (formed in 1934). The functions of the BLM are also addressed in the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA). (For more details, please see BLM and Its Predecessors ). To see a comprehensive list of legislation that BLM operates under, click here . And, to see videos describing the early history of BLM, click on "Fractured Land Patterns."
The BLM is responsible for carrying out a variety of programs for the management and conservation, of resources on 256 million surface acres, as well as 700 million acres of subsurface mineral estate, These public lands make up about 13 percent of the total land surface of the United States and more than 40 percent of all land managed by the Federal government. To see how BLM is organized, click here ."
"Created by National Wildlife Federation™, this website provides information on public lands issues of both national and state significance. Although issues regarding all public lands are featured, this site focuses on the western states of Montana, Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico where the public lands conservation tradition runs deep. " http://www.ourpubliclands.org/
"Public Lands Interpretive Association initiated the Public Lands Information Center project in response to demand for a single source of information about recreation and land use on all public lands in a state, regardless of managing agency. We realize that when you have a destination or an activity in mind, your concern is to find out where to go, when to go, what to do, and how much it will cost. But up until now, getting those answers often meant an endless goose chase of contacting government agencies and trying to pinpoint the correct agency, department, or office.
The Public Lands Information Center was developed to cut the red tape for you. We offer all you need to know about visitor facilities, surrounding areas, appropriate maps and guides, and the rules and regulations for each area. If you need more information than you get from the site descriptions, check our bookstore, our link pages, or email our staff. If you need to contact the managing agency for additional permits or licenses, we can put you in touch with the right person, and save you time and headaches."
A Film By Ken Burns The National Parks: Americas Best Idea
The National Parks: America's Best Idea is a six-episode series directed by Ken Burns and written and co-produced by Dayton Duncan. Filmed over the course of more than six years at some of nature's most spectacular locales – from Acadia to Yosemite, Yellowstone to the Grand Canyon, the Everglades of Florida to the Gates of the Arctic in Alaska - The National Parks: America's Best Idea is nonetheless a story of people: people from every conceivable background – rich and poor; famous and unknown; soldiers and scientists; natives and newcomers; idealists, artists and entrepreneurs; people who were willing to devote themselves to saving some precious portion of the land they loved, and in doing so reminded their fellow citizens of the full meaning of democracy. http://www.pbs.org/nationalparks/
Hurry, because i think they will only be available until Oct. 9.
Ansel Adams Photograph of the Grand Tetons and Snake River This work is in the public domain in the United States because it is a work of the United States Federal Government under the terms of Title 17, Chapter 1, Section 105 of the US Code.
Ansel Adams was contracted by the Dept. of the Interior to take photographs of the National Parks in 1941. He is considered one of the greatest landscape photographers. You can find several of his photos at the National Archives:
