Grok Bio

 I asked for an unhinged bio of Primevalpapa and received the following:

"Unhinged Bio of Primeval Papa

In the misty dawn of prehistory — or at least the late 20th century — a creature emerged from the primordial ooze of the American Southwest: Primeval Papa. Half engineer, half apex predator, 100% certified cranky ole man with a suspiciously well-maintained '87 Bronco that refuses to die (clearly powered by spite and dinosaur bones).

Born with the primeval brain fully in charge, he rejected the weak modern comforts of "not owning enough guns" and "staying in one place for less than 44 biblical years." While lesser men were busy being boring, Papa was out in the desert hunting, fishing, archery-shooting, trap-shooting, and collecting actual rocks from old mines like a goddamn dragon hoarding shiny things for his wife's future North Carolina rock garden.

By day: Control Systems Engineer, taming machines like a cyber-sorcerer. By night (and weekends): He roamed the wilds, probably arguing with squirrels, reloading shotgun shells for 16-gauge heresy, and maintaining an arsenal that would make lesser mortals call the ATF "just to be safe."

Then came the great migration. After four decades turning into a desert lizard in Arizona, Papa said "enough" and dragged the entire household (including crates of swearing and Night Blooming Cereus cacti) to the humid wilds of Hampstead, North Carolina. Now he lives around the corner from the grandkids, upgrades boat outboards like he's prepping for naval warfare on the Intercoastal Sound, and complains about the shocking discovery that North Carolina does get snow. Twelve inches? Four-foot drifts? The man who survived the desert now faces the horror of buying a real snow shovel. The humanity.

He is a Freemason, an NRA guy, a reader of blogs that would make Reddit moderators cry, a lover of poker, classic trucks, and telling it like it is. His children think he's primeval. His dog AJ thought he was the best nap supervisor on Earth. His blog is a beautiful time capsule of unfiltered opinions, gun talk, hunting stories, and the occasional political rant that hits like a .357 Magnum of common sense.

Primeval Papa: Retired but not really. Grumpy but loving. Still hunting, still fishing, still refusing to let the modern world fully civilize him. Long may the Bronco rumble, the outboard roar, and the primeval brain stay in charge.

Respect the Papa. Or at least don't get between him and his reloading bench."

The comment about "Arguing with squirrels" made me laugh! It missed that I am originally from MI.

Have I mentioned that I Don't Like Snow?

 When I asked about the weather in Hampstead, I was told that it hardly ever snows. Last winter there was a snow for about 4" worth before we moved here. It was just a fluke they said. Saturday night a nor'easter rolled through for twelve inches worth. There was drift between the vehicles that was four feet high! Guess that I might have to buy a proper snow shovel.

Well This Sucks for the Start of the New Year

We had to take AJ, our toy fox terrier, to the vet this morning as he collapsed and was having breathing problems. Turns out he had heart failure and his lungs were filling. He did not respond to the actions taken by the vet and continued to get worse.

He was originally our daughter's dog she adopted just before she got married. Her hubby got stationed to Okinawa so the dog ended staying with us. He was a rescue dog that had had a pretty bad case of tick fever before she got him. I noticed his eyes were cloudy when he was a pup so we took him to the vet and he ended up on eye drops etc for life. The eyes did clear up. We were dealing with this when our daughter relocated and did not want to try to put him in quarantine to get him into Okinawa.

AJ kind of adopted me. He would follow me here and there. When he got older, he would come nag me to go to bed when he was ready. He liked the grandkids and they loved petting him.

AJ was one of the good ones. 

RIP  1/1/2012 - 1/3/2026

Season’s Greetings

 

Season’s Greetings from Hampstead, North Carolina! I thought it might be nice to do a little update. In 2024, we were thinking about maybe buying a second house in NC to facilitate visiting the grandkids and family. It was decided that we really liked the area after visiting several times. We decided that 44 years in the desert was past biblical and it was time to just pack up and move to provide us with our next great adventure! We purchased a nice 3-bedroom home around the corner from the grandchildren in 2024 and formally finished the relocation in June of 2025. Boy, can you collect a lot of junk in 44 years at the same home! The home in AZ finally sold/closed in October.

 My better half decided that she wanted a rock garden here and wanted some of the rocks we collected around the old mines in AZ. Yes, I packed up rocks to transport to NC. There were quite a few crates and swearing involved. I also brought some Night Blooming Cereus cacti and our Tombstone Rose. The Night Blooming Cereus has already bloomed once.

 We are enjoying being around the grandkids on a regular basis! Every day is a new adventure.

 I am technically retired (finally) but am still doing training sessions for the company. I am classed as a “casual” employee.

 RAV4 is gone and my better half has a pretty blue 2026 KIA Sportage of which she is quite fond. I am getting a new outboard for the boat switching from 8hp to 25hp. This will be a better combination for fishing the Topsail Intercoastal Sound. I have done a couple of fishing charters learning to fish for the saltwater fish. This is a lot of fun!

The Bronco still lives! I will try to be better at posting now that we are kind of settled. We hope you have a great New Year!

Tell us what you really think!

 I think that he has had enough.

Comfortable with Violence Against Innocents

 I have blatantly taken this from The Smallest Minority and believe that this is well worth a couple minutes of your time.

What's My Line?

 Will the real WalMart Greeter please stand up.

Time for a New Car

 It has been 17 years since we bought a new car. Time flies! The only vehicle in the driveway that is appreciating is the 87 Bronco. The newest is the 2006 RAV which we will keep. I guess I will give up on the 98 Astro even thought it runs fine. We want something new for travelling cross country for our upcoming road trips. I have been threatening to retire in January 2024 and start some trips.

I need something with legroom. My better half is a bit shorter than I am and needs something for her too. We went shopping yesterday. We drove a Nissan Pathfinder. I thought it was OK but wasn't thrilled. My wife disliked it as the seating left her having to turn off the heads-up display as it was right in her line of sight. We then drove a Hyundai Palisade. I have no brand loyalty. At one point there was a Ford, Chevy, Dodge, Toyota, and Hyundai in the driveway at the same time.

I really liked the Palisade and I could tell that She-Who-Must-be-Obeyed really liked it. She was concerned that I would pick something that she didn't like. The passenger side had enough room that I could even take a nap there. We agreed on a model that was more than I planned but it isn't like we buy cars all the time. We settled on the SEL with the premium package with the 8 person capacity. It should be at the dealer's in May. Looks like this:

She thinks it looks great. I think that the front end is homely but what do I know? I drove an International for years!

I am Leaking Money Again

I had received a nice note from the HOA (seriously - it was actually polite) saying that we needed to paint our garage door. This is true without doubt. The garage door in question was carefully examined. It is the original from 1981 and the wood veneer was starting to lift which caused me to pronounce, "Talk about putting lipstick on a pig! I think it needs to be replaced." I contacted three garage door places. 

One never returned any calls. Another came and looked. I said I had a couple of questions since I wanted to know how much I needed to move for them to be able to do their work. He asked if was in a hurry and I responded "kind of" but I was getting one more quote. He told me to call him after I get the quote. I said I had some questions. He said call me after you get the quote. I expect he was going to try to shop the price. I do not care to operate this way and told him I had something I wanted to show him. He was escorted to the front door where I pointed to his vehicle and told him to leave as we were done. He did not even seem to care. I won't mention the name of company.

I will mention Overhead Door Company of Tucson. They were responsive and quoted a fair price. The work was scheduled and completed as promised. No muss or fuss. Nice job.

Remember the title about money? The refrigerator we have in the garage died while waiting for the garage door to arrive. Lowes had something on sale that would work and was delivered the next day.

I have been concerned about the water heater as it is the original from 1981. That must be a record for longevity. I can only think that it lasted that long because soon after we moved in, I replaced the drain valve on the unit with a full throat ball valve so that it would drain properly. This was done once or more a year. We decided, since there was a nice clear path after reorganizing the garage, to have it replaced. I tried to get three prices. Again, one never returned calls. The second was questionable. 

The third was from Just Water Heaters. The price was fair, and they were ready, willing, and able to come about any time you wanted. The man that replaced the gas unit was done in 1 hour and 35 minutes including putting things away and paying the bill. He did a nice job.

My better half commented that this should be about it for a little while since these things come in threes you know. I commented that the water heater was elective and wasn't sure that it counted, I really don't believe in the thing of threes.

The next weekend we heard water dripping after the AC turned off. The old coils were not dripping where they should be and was running down the side. The 23-year-old split unit has now been replaced with a SEER 16 unit. I figure that difference in the electric bill might pay for the unit in about 9 years or so. By the time the new was installed there was a nice stain in the ceiling downstairs I waited for it to dry and used some Kilz before spot painting. Looks OK for now.

My better half stated that this should be good as that is about everything. I said, "Don't say that! There is still the washer, drier, kitchen refrigerator, dishwasher...."

I could have purchased a guided elk hunt with all the services and a new rifle/scope combination of choice for the money that has been spent! Maybe two trips! Aaah, the joys of home ownership.

Tales of Reloading

 Mid last year I purchased a MEC 9000 in 12 gauge from a gentleman at lodge who had no further use for it. I had quit reloading 12 gauge a decade of better ago as there wasn't much to be saved in that gauge or the 20 gauge due to lead and component costs rising. I had sold my MEC Jr in 12 and 20 back then. I had told my friend that I wasn't really interested. He said there were thousand hulls and wads to go with it and named a price that could not be refused.

A couple of the guys at work could not find much in shells coming up on dove season. So the reloading started. We could find more once fired hulls, wads, shot, and occasionally some primers. We had enough powder of various types to keep us going. I reloaded  over a thousand hulls for the guys at work. I received some shot and powder in exchange. It was a good barter. More was loaded for them for this year's season. I put some up for myself. The long term plan is to sell the press and about a 1000 hulls/wads later this year. I really don't use 12 gauge for much. When I chase pheasants with the boys and dogs, I use my side by side 16 gauge. I use the 410 or the 20 gauge for dove season.

Some #4 and #5 shot loads are being loaded for the 16 gauge in preparation for pheasant hunting this fall/winter. I don't need a lot of these so 5 boxes of each will last for a few years.

You cannot find the Remington wads anymore that I like since they broke up the company. The SP20 and the SP16 wads are extinct. This means that there are few good 1 oz loads for the 20 gauge out there. Winchester used to have an equivalent but that has been discontinued. I did find one 20 gauge load in 1 oz using a BP Wad and W572 but the pressures are kind of high for what I like to load.

I put up 3 cases of 20 gauge 7/8 oz loads. Looks like I will switch to Cheddite hulls after the Rem STS and WinAA are worn out as there are components available with that hull for 7/8 and 1 oz loads with reasonable pressures.

Now to the 410 shells. I had always saved my WinAA hulls and had bought some once fired. I figured since I was on a roll, it was time to load 410. I had all the components for some time but did not realize that I had saved 1600 hulls. I loaded them all! Watch out doves - here I come!

Why I Support States Having Professional Engineering (PE) Requirements.

 

Math is "Subjective" And "Used to Normalize Racism and Marginalization of Non-Eurocentric Mathematical Knowledges"

The statement about math being subjective and blah, blah, blah.....is a lame excuse. This really translates to, "Math is hard and I don't want to have to do anything hard."

Profession Engineer examination become more critical and important to public safety when schools start to dumb down the engineering curriculum. I do not want to be anywhere near a public building or electrical substation designed by someone who cannot perform the correct calculations.

There have been some recent arguments that a four year degree is all that should be required to advertise yourself as an Engineer. There is so much that is not taught during those four years, even at a good college, that none of the recent grads should want to take personal liability for public safety in their designs. The mentoring under a current PE and then the capability to pass the exam are very important to competent design and public safety.

I believe there was one lawsuit based on the principal that the designer had a degree and had been performing this function for years for private industry. Why should he have to have a PE to advertise to the public as an Engineer? My question would be as to why you are afraid to take the exam if you are soo good at what you do?

The Bronco is Blessed

 

It was raining off and on during my 2019 deer hunt and I noticed this rainbow. It came right down on the Bronco. I can never sell it now as it has been touched by a rainbow! I made diligent search around and under it but alas there was no pot of gold to be found. I think that I will put in my will that I want to be buried in it.

An Era has Passed - Rush is Gone

 It is sad that Rush is gone early. I listened to his show only occasionally so I probably would not qualify as a Ditto Head. There was always a strong effort for facts and analysis on many topics. He seemed to stay away from vitriol. I could never stand the hosts that were shouting at me as volume convinces me of nothing. Rush Limbaugh was a Great American. Rest in peace.

Who is going to try to fill his shoes?

Grand Baby #2

Beautiful baby girl! I decided that I needed to start posting anew since it has been some time since the last one. This is a perfect starter since babies are beautiful!

 Her brother is quite pleased that she has arrived.

We are quite pleased for our daughter and son-in-law.

Did I mention that babies are beautiful?

Father's Day

My Sweetie surprised me as I had forgotten that I had the below circled in one of the catalogs. Nice gift!

Almost made me want to take something apart and put it together last night just so that I could play with the tools.

Just Thinking

Just thinking again and it still hurts. Best man I ever knew.

Getting Ready for the Zombie Apocalypse

Just kidding as I am actually getting ready for some steel shoots. I was doing inventory and relocated these older polymer coated bullets from Lucky 13 so I loaded them up. This company seems to have folded. The green color on these was called Zombie 13. I had loaded a few for a test batch some time ago and they shot well.

I am having poor luck with companies. Lucky 13 is gone. I have purchased bullets from Eggleston as they had good prices and polymer coats in different colors. They are now transitioning to new ownership and no orders are being taken until the transfer is completed. We shall see what their prices look like when they come back online for sales.

It is time to get back to some blogging and some steel shoots!

Glow in the Dark Wild Boar!!??

Wild boars roam Czech forests - and some of them are radioactive

Hunting radioactive boar at night could be an alternative to wild boar hunting in Texas! Some of the boar have been eating a seasonal false truffles which have an affinity for Caesium 137 which is what was released in copious quantities at Chernobyl.

From the article ....

"The semi-good news is that even meat from radioactive animals would be a health hazard only in large doses, Drapal said. You would have to eat it several times a week for couple of months, to get sick, he said."

I can hear the conversation in the night time hunting blind now, "OK Comrade, don't shoot the glowing one in that pack. It probably has too high a level of nuclear energy to use the meat. The others you can take because you can eat a little bit of them."

I will have to get my thoughts around that statement. Let's see, the half life of Caesium 137 is 30 years. You have taken it into the system by ingesting it. The race is on! How long does it take the body to purge all of it out of the system before you have that next pulled pork sandwich? I guess you could add a little Prussian Blue to the diet which could it get it out of the system a bit quicker but I think I may just pass.

Fishing at Silverbell

We went fishing at the Aaron Lodge #49 Masonic Family Picnic that was held at Christopher Columbus Park. A fine time was had by all and there was a nice turnout. Don't laugh at my little fish as I believe that it was the only one of the day!

There may a trend developing here in that I must take a picture of every teeny fish I catch when going out. I am sure that I will do the same if anything notable (in a larger sense) is caught.
I am having fun with the teeny fish pictures.

UPDATE: I needed to update this post with a picture from the 2019 picnic. I am becoming more proficient at catching very little fish!

Back to Chicago - Part II

Once again I found myself outside the windy city in the hamlet known as Kingery on the 15th to visit with daughter #1 (D#1) and fiance (F). The F and I went to Bass Pro on Friday to talk to the guys in the fishing department about where to go and to buy 3 rods/reels along with the appropriate tackle box and terminal tackle. Yes, there were a few lures thrown in there along with a book on fishing in Illinois. F spent the usual amount of time, for a first time visitor, admiring the myriad of mounts and displays. I remember the first time I went into a Cabelas/Bass Pro and how impressive it is. We had lunch at the Islamorada Fish Company and headed back to the homestead to prepare for Saturday.

Saturday found F and me at Heinecke Lake for our first stop. This is a man-made elevated lake that serves as cooling water for a power plant. There is a lot of rip-rap posing as a shoreline. The guys there were mainly fishing for catfish although there are bass, sunfish, and some walleye. We were a bit late in the day for Walleye fishing but did not care as this was an exploratory trip. We wet a line and proceeded to hook up on the rocks with a few hooks being lost. A few nibbles were encountered without any serious strikes.

After Heinecke, we went to check out Whalen Lake which is closer to the homestead. This is pleasant little lake in one of the many preserve areas of Illinois. Again we wet a line and proceeded to start playing with bluegills. I had a great time roaming around with F.

Sunday was a stand-down day. We got a paper in the AM, ate breakfast, looked at the paper and then returned to Bass Pro to get D#1 a fishing license. We picked up a few things that I thought would be handy for the next day fishing. Later, we went for a walk to the little waterfall in Waterfall Glen Preserve. No, it not named that because of the waterfall. It is actually named after Seymour Waterfall who was an early president of the Districts Board of Commissioners. The waterfall is man made. Zoey, the guard dog, went with us to keep us safe. She was hilarious as when D#1 was going to set her down in the water, the feet were going like she was swimming before touching the water.

We were off to Whalen Lake on Monday morning for all of us to play around. No one caught any large fish but due to my extreme expertise  and endless patience, I was able to catch the smallest bluegill and this very small gobie pictured below.

There really is a fish in this picture! Note the amazement on D#1's face that I was able to accomplish this almost impossible task. I am proud to have my picture taken with this elusive hermit of the lake.

The 18th was D#1's birthday and the 20th was mine. We split the date difference and went to Cooper's Hawk that evening. Cooper's is a winery and restaurant. It was excellent. Good wine, food and company. There is not much more for one to ask for!

On Tuesday D#1 and I returned to Whalen to play around with some more fish. My last day there went too quickly as always.

I was off to the airport Wednesday morning to wait out a thunderstorm to catch my flight. I thank D#1 and F for the hospitality and putting up with the "old man". I believe that I will switch modes and start fishing for the largest fish on the next trip!