Home on the range?

I’ve found a place around Chapel Hill to bowl.

There’re a couple of lanes in the student union, but somehow bowling without Alan, Chad, beer and nachos just doesn’t seem right.

I’ve also found a place to play golf for cheap over in Apex, but it’s just not as much fun without the carrousel music in the background like over at Royster in Shelby.

And getting back into shooting has been quite an ordeal.

Living in Shelby I had a free public range 20 minutes down the road (email me for the directions… jderrick@alumni.unc.edu).

Around the Triangle, ranges seem to come in two types: expensive indoor ranges that don’t allow my type of fire-breathing, smoke bellowing muzzleloader anyway, and expensive outdoor clubs where I have to pay initiation fees, monthly fees, buy stock in the club….

So finding a convenient, cheap, safe place to make smoke has been a bit of an issue involving telephone calls to darn near every gun store between Raleigh and Burlington, emails to three counties worth of law enforcement, hours on Google….

At one point I got the idea that if it’s OK to shoot on public game land (with valid permit, training… of course), why not just say you’re hunting for whatever’s in season, but keep missing and hitting paper targets, instead? So I shot off an email.

When I got no response after a while, I shot off another….

In the NC hunting regulations, it says you can’t target shoot at a couple of game lands. What they don’t say is that you can’t do that at any of them. Thank me for finding that out.

And I’d already signed up for the hunter education course, too.

Finally I found the Buckhorn Rifle & Pistol Club, out between Chapel Hill and Mebane. About $150 a year, facilities for rifle, pistol and shotgun… great. They’ve got 100 yards of secluded safety with a bench at one end and a berm at the other – all I really want.

I’ve found a home range.

Now I need a rifle.

See, I’ve got my firearms. But they’re at my parent’s house in Wake Forest.

As I sat down to sign the lease here in Chapel Hill, with a car full of boxes and more on the way, I found out there’s a no weapons clause for my apartment complex – and that means flintlocks.

Sometimes I really miss Shelby.

Check back next week for the resolution. If I’ve found one.

Some of last year's award winning shots of mine....

"Three-spice Lemon Weiz....."

My most recent Mr. Beer creation....

http://www.mrbeer.com/

"3 Spice Lemon Weiz:

If you're looking to brew something a little out of the ordinary, this sharp and zesty wheat beer will be right up your alley. The blend of brown spices and fruity esters abound in every complex and contemplative sip of 3 Spice Lemon Wheat."

http://www.mrbeer.com/view.php?id=
3splewe&toplevel=Recipes¤titem
=3&showgroup=Alphabetical%20Listing
&brand=&coloursort=&template
=recipes&menu=sub4&mactive=3&subactive=-1

UNC - 7, Clemson - 52?

Did I read that right?

http://tarheelblue.cstv.com/sports/
m-footbl/unc-m-footbl-body.html

Oy vey....

A Gentleman's Knife....

I can’t think of many things more useful than a small knife.
I remember my grandfather getting one for his 80th birthday. I remember 80 seemed really, really old (I was only about 5) and a little pocket knife was quite a curious thing.
He explained it as a “gentleman’s knife” – not some sort of massive weapon used for skinning dragons, not all that useful for chopping down trees, but just the thing for the small tasks that come up every day.
Then I went and grew up doing scouting and running around in the woods and really learned the wisdom of having a little something to cut some string, open a package, work on some food…. One of my pet peeves going though school was that I couldn’t carry my favorite tool – one of my small little “gentleman’s knives.”
Then I got to college and the regulations were more relaxed: machete – no, folding knife – yes.
Today I’ve got a tiny little knife on my keychain and a little mini-multitool gadget in my pocket. Neither of them would count much as a weapon, but I get a lot of use out the multitool in particular.
It’s one of the little perks my health insurance company sends me about every month for exercising regularly and recording it on their website. Every couple months I get a new little pliers/knife/screwdriver thingie. They’re not all that high a quality, but I have a pretty steady stream of replacements and the old ones fit well into tackle boxes and backpacks.
I also have a Leatherman I got for my 13th birthday. It’s helped me out of quite a few jams from fixing a suitcase in Australia to building monkey bridges in North Carolina. Just this week I’ve been using its can opener after my fancier mechanical model cracked and broke. But the high-quality knife is a good bit bigger and heavier and I don’t want to lose it, so it mostly lives in my car.
The little mini-multitool has some pliers, scissors, some screwdrivers, a small nail file and a few little tools I don’t really know what they do…. It fits nicely in my pocket and pretty much just lives there while it’s waiting to be needed.
And it’s needed pretty often. With bikes and computers and golf clubs and flintlocks and the like, it’s in pretty regular service.
Tell you what. This week I’ll try to keep a list of all the things it gets used for.
I’ll keep you posted….

Is this really news?

Willie Nelson got busted for pot?

http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/
Music/09/18/willie.busted.ap/index.html

Umm, duh?

I mean, come on. Did folks just now catch on to this? Toby Keith even did a song about Willie & his favored brand of agriculture: "Weed With Willie."

"I learned a hard lesson in a small Texas town
He fired up a fat boy and passed him around
The last words that I spoke before they tucked me in
Was I'll never smoke weed with Willie again"

http://www.cowboylyrics.com/lyrics/
keith-toby/weed-with-willie-10325.html

By the way, Mr. Nelson, thanks for your work on "Pancho and Lefty".... I really like that one.

Tofu Chili -- back by popular demand....

Well, I made some of my usual chili dish for a lwa school event this week. And then I used some of the rest of the batch to reward a buddy for helping me move a sofa. And then I took some to a church potluck...

So I'm still working through a few quarts of the stuff but folks seem to like it, so here's a repost of the recipe, gleaned from the Runner's World website, from a while back....

Vegetarian Chili

by: Liz Applegate Ph.D.

http://www.runnersworld.com/article/
0,5033,s6-53-0-0-5202,00.html

"This tasty, low-fat chili contains four different runner-friendly foods: canola oil, sweet red peppers, tofu and black beans. Eating vegetarian chili can warm you up after a cold or rainy run.

Ingredients:
2 tsp canola oil1
cup scallions, chopped
1 cup sweet red peppers, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
8 ozs firm tofu, well-drained and squeezed dry
1 tbsp chili powder
1/8 tsp ground red pepper
1 14 1/2-ounce can stewed tomatoes
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 1/4 cups canned black beans
1 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped

Directions: Warm the oil in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the scallions, sweet red peppers and garlic, sautéing for 4 to 5 minutes.Crumble the tofu and add to the pan. Stir frequently for 5 to 7 minutes. Add the chili powder and ground red pepper. Stir frequently for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and red wine vinegar. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes. Stir in the black beans and cilantro. Simmer for 5 minutes. Serves 2."

I googled the recipe on the Runner's World website a while back. I'm not a strict vegetarian by any means but aside from certain social contexts (like chili cookoffs) I've tenth'd my meat intake and am still getting ten times more than I need (actually, with a correct diet you don't even need any).

So I say I'm a quasi-veggie and enjoy occasionally exposing folks to new foods. Like tofu. They seem to get a kick out of it.

I generally toss in an extra can of chili beans and have been ratcheting the heat. Every time I've made this recipe folks have asked for more spice and I've added more spice. I make it again and they still want it hotter.

I like spicy food as much as anyone but not to the napalm-nuke degree of excruciation some of my coworkers do. Some folks enjoy the pain. Personally, life hurts enough without me adding torment recreationally.

I'm not into that S&M stuff, though apparently a lot of folks are.

The Hill

I live about a mile from the UNC law school. That’s not far on a bike. But remember how it’s called Chapel “Hill?”

When I tell folks who know the area where I live and where I have classes, their next question regarding getting between the two is generally about “The Hill.”

It’s 1.2 miles from my door to the law school, and most of that is a pretty vicious uphill grade. It’s a bear going up, about 180 feet in elevation change according to Google Earth, but coming down it on Monday I recorded 39.6 miles an hour on my bike computer.

:)

Truth of the matter is it’s not all too bad going up – just a little more patience and a little more gear.

And I’ve been getting stronger. This is a hill I’ve worked with before – running and riding up and down it as an undergrad and an alum, and this time I’ve looked at it as my daily workout.

The first few times I had to go up the hill in my lowest gear. Then I was able to do it in the second lowest. Then third. Then fourth.

Then I got tired of getting all sweaty before getting to campus and started going up in first again.

Just think – while my classmates are struggling to get a few minutes of exercise into their busy schedules each day, I get to take advantage of the time I would have spent waiting for the bus to get a little workout, do a little environmentally-friendly commuting, give myself a little extra flexibility in my schedule and even have a little fun.

Coming downhill Monday I recorded 39.6 miles an hour on my bike computer.

:)

I’ve got a hybrid bike. That means it’s not really great at anything – too heavily built for long, fast road jaunts (though I’ve done it, and it hurt) and with wheels a little too narrow for rugged mountain trails (though I’ve done it, and it hurt).

But it’s “good enough” at just about everything – perfect for a campus commute full of gravel, dirt and curbs, as well as the standard, well-paved roads. I can crawl up trails and down steps, and still manage 20 miles an hour on level pavement.

So far I haven’t had a chance to do too much recreational riding, on road or on trail, but I’ll get around to it at some point. Like in Cleveland County, there are a lot of good opportunities around here.

Such as The Hill.

:)

Yeah, I compiled this a while back, Sept. 11, 2002....

One year ago today - a date which will live in infamy - the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked. We have highly resolved that our dead shall not have died in vain, and we work to lift the dark threat of violence from our people and our future.

We rally the world to this cause by our efforts, by our courage. We, fighting for freedom, responsible for our actions, dedicated to the principles which made our country free, and trusting in God and in the United States of America, will not tire, will not falter, and we will not fail.

The world is very different now, and let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of liberty.

The energy, the faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country, the land of the free and the home of the brave, and all who serve it— the glow from that fire can truly light the world.

In this spirit, we ask not what our country can do for us—but what we can do for our country--one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

And so, for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

Rev. War reenactment in Hillsborough....

http://www.historichillsborough.org/
database/pagemaker.cgi?1156256903

Good Times!

And a little (~ 4 megs...) video...

http://s24.photobucket.com/albums/c23/
jderrick/?action=view&current=Hillsborough.flv

Paddling Sinkers Creek...

http://s24.photobucket.com/albums/c23/
jderrick/?action=view&current=sinkerscreek.flv

Here you go,

John

Kayaking to Sinkers Creek....

After paddling my family’s kayak the four or five miles to Gum Point and back, I settled on heading the other direction on the Pamlico River that evening and paddling up Sinkers Creek and back.

Sinkers Creek, as I related last week, is actually St. Clair Creek on the maps. But it’s drawled into vernacular as Sinkers over the years, and I think new name adds a little flair. Especially for boaters.

According to Wikipedia.org, St. Clare (yeah, slightly different spelling) of Assisi is the patron saint of needleworkers. Yeah, I prefer Sinkers.

Anyway, the trip downstream to where the creek comes into the river ran pretty well. There is a little channel between two spits of land that larger boats want to stay as the enter the creek, but the kayak only draws a couple of inches of water, so that’s not much of a problem.

But I am always worried that someone piloting a larger boat won’t see me and will plow right over me, which wouldn’t be good.

So I scooted on into the creek and started working along the shore, heading up the flow to where a bridge crosses – maybe a mile upstream.

As you pass through the two marshy spits of land that divide the creek from the river, Sinkers opens out to a body of water large enough for a little water skiing. But as you head upstream you see less and less water and more and more marsh.

Someday I’ll probably run into an alligator but so far I haven’t.

I have run into a very unhappy river otter while exploring the creek with my Dad once upon a time. The critter was maybe 20 feet from our boat, in the water, only its head sticking up, and just chattering away at us with burning vehemence. I don’t speak otter-ese, but he sure didn’t sound friendly.

I wove my way upstream to the bridge, at which point the creek is maybe only 30 feet wide – large enough for a small grass boat ramp, but don’t show up with your yacht. I passed under the bridge (kind of a right of passage that you’ve actually been there for me) and headed back.

I was worried I was running a little late, which is I was worried my Mom was worried I was running a little late, so I tried for a pretty good pace back to the main part of the river….

…where I found the wind had picked up and I was going to have to fight my way into a pretty healthy crop of whitecaps if I wanted to make it back.

So I buckled down and put my back into it (and made sure my camera was in it’s plastic baggie: pictures on the blog, jderrickstar.blogspot.com) and tried to ignore the water coming into the boat as waves splashed into the cockpit.

Things were a little hairy, but it was mostly just a case of keeping my cool, having my weight in the bottom of the boat (kayaks have a reputation as being a little tipsy) and keeping moving.
I made it back in good shape with tired arms.

More recently I’ve been using my legs – cycling around Chapel Hill as a newly minted law student.

But that’s another column.

Spanish Moss...

... in Sinkers Creek. I've got a little video I'll try to polish up....

Steve Irwin, "The Crocodile Hunter"

I found out this morning that Steve Irwin, “The Crocodile Hunter,” passed away following injury by a stingray’s barb.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/TV/09/04/australia.irwin/index.html

I don’t know all the details, as likely nobody does yet, but from what I understand it was an absolutely freak incident that no amount of training or expertise could have averted and that could have happened to just about anyone who’s ever swum in coastal waters.

We have stingrays down on the Pamlico River here in North Carolina. I see them every once in a while, but they always scurry away before I can get a close look. I’ve heard of someone getting stung, but in a quarter century down there have never actually seen it happen.

Basically, someone’s just walking along, unable to see the bottom, and accidentally steps on one. The poor critter, just being defensive, shoots up their barb saying, “Hey, don’t step on me.” If you stepped on me and I had a barb, I’d likely do the same. Getting stung’s generally the sort of thing that probably ruins your day, but isn’t all too serious.

One report I read of the incident in Australia stated the ray was buried in the sand, as skittish bottom dwellers are prone to do. I can imagine Irwin just swimming across the sand, as I have, as everybody who’s gone swimming at the beach has, when he unwittingly passes over the land mine and it goes off.

And while I’m not a doctor, I don’t think you can go very far with something punched through your heart, no matter how stong, educated or incredible you are.

He'll be missed.

Kayaking the Pamlico....

My family’s little corner of the Pamlico River, our side of the 3 ½ mile wide flow though Eastern North Carolina, can be described as a small community of houses in a large bay with a point of land jutting into the river a upstream and a large creek digging into the shore downstream.

The community is called Rest Haven, where my Grandfather built a small cottage after The War. The jutting spitz of low marsh and pine trees is called Gun Point and the tributary goes by Sinker’s Creek.

It’s technically St. Clair Creek, according to topozone.com, but we all call it Sinker’s.
I’ve got a map on the blog: jderrickstar.blogspot.com….

I had a few spare days this summer when I was able to piddle around a little in my family’s kayak and enjoy poking round the old places again.

The craft weighs almost 60 pounds. So it’s not a whole lot of fun to tote, but one person can still store, carry and launch it. This makes it a whole lot easier for everybody else who doesn’t want to store, carry and launch it.

I started out just paddling near our house, then venturing farther afield as I toughened a little until I covered a few trips of four or five miles, which is something of a workout for someone who doesn’t spend too much time on the waves.

Going to Gum Point one morning I got into the boat with some water, my camera, a life jacket, some sunscreen and a hat and started going. I set off pretty straight across the bay to try and make time while I still had the energy and the waves hadn’t developed too high yet. I figured I’d poke around the point’s marshy little coves on the way back if I had energy.

In about an hour I made it to the tip of Gum Point, sharing the river with gulls, ducks, osprey and crabbing boats checking their crab pots. I hear a lot of Maryland’s vaunted crabs come from our North Carolinian waters these days, and I get some variety of pride out of that. I turned around and started heading back, getting a good view of the ferry along the way.

In Eastern North Carolina there are a few places where not a whole lotta folks need to cross a whole lotta water. Out in the sound, between the mainland and the Outer Banks, you can actually be inside our state and out of sight of land. Where a bridge might not fit the bill, ferries sub in. We’ve got a free ferry crossing our river every half-hour or so all day long and it works better than driving 20 miles to the nearest bridge, and spices up a kayaking trip.

I made it back the Rest Haven without too much hassle.

Getting back from Sinker’s Creek was not as easy.

But that’s another column....