So I have been messing around with the idea of making a denatured alcohol stove for camping/touring/hiking etc.. There are lots of different plans for making such a thing online, and though you can buy one that is pre-made from a reputable manufacturer(and seemingly safer) I decided to go the cheap and easy route. The prep for this job is basically how I prep for just about any such daunting task, downing two beers. Cept this time I saved my empties and instead of throwing them into the recycling bin, I re-used them for this project. Now I'm not usually a fan of Heineken, and this task was no exception, but I put on a half-hearted grimace and comenced with the drinking, trying all the while to keep myself from just pouring the beer down the drain, repeating to myself "get to the third one and the taste wont matter". I lied. to myself. After shotgunning two... or was it 5? 6? uhm... at some point I switched back to something I can stand, good ol' Sierra Nevada... mmmm, but any way... I got strait to cutting these cans to use for my stove. two can bottoms one pressed firmly inside the other with holes drilled into it for the burner (note to self, next time try using the power tools before getting to the nth number of beers.)
One large hole in the center for filling and pressure control will be covered by a penny durring burning, and six smaller holes in the outside ring of the top can... the instructions on the website do a better job of explaining than I do. http://www.csun.edu/~mjurey/stoveinstruct.html but here are some pictures of the results of my half hack job. After doing this I realize that anyone can build a stove in a pinch... I used bicycle spokes and scraps of the beer cans to build the pot base, obviously the Heineken can works well but I imagine other beer cans might work as well, and the the denatured alcohol was picked up at home depot, but can be found at a hardware store in any small town. just knowing how to do this I now see this as a necessary survival skill.
Spent the day at Ft. Desoto Thursday after class taking pictures. Here are a few of my favorite shots. Brown Pelicans, a cute raccoon in a tree, a rose-breasted grosbeak on migration, and a female scarlet tanager also on migration (could not find a male). The birding thing has certainly hit me hard :)
One large hole in the center for filling and pressure control will be covered by a penny durring burning, and six smaller holes in the outside ring of the top can... the instructions on the website do a better job of explaining than I do. http://www.csun.edu/~mjurey/stoveinstruct.html but here are some pictures of the results of my half hack job. After doing this I realize that anyone can build a stove in a pinch... I used bicycle spokes and scraps of the beer cans to build the pot base, obviously the Heineken can works well but I imagine other beer cans might work as well, and the the denatured alcohol was picked up at home depot, but can be found at a hardware store in any small town. just knowing how to do this I now see this as a necessary survival skill.
The garden is in full bloom and the fruits are starting to blossom from our labor. This year Caleb and I are growing all kinds of things. Tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, spinach, corn, and onions. We are starting to see tomatoes and peppers and the rate the corn is growing we will see corn in a few weeks as well. It is exciting to work so diligently with something that requires attention and care. I believe this is teaching Caleb a lot of things and I am proup to use this garden as a teaching tool for my son.
I had to do a biological collection for my Intro to Florida Field Biology course that I am taking as a requisite to my degree. We had to choose from either plants, crustaceans, insects or birds. I thought that plants or insects would be boring and I dont like the beach so that pretty much ruled out the shell thing... which would have been boring as well. I chose to turn in photographs of birds.
This was a decision not only for a class project, but it turns out that it was a life decision to become a birdwatcher. With camera in tow everywhere I go I constantly find myself shooting pictures of birds no matter who is around to see or how far I had to trek to get the best shot.
