Brad Manor

I have a couple Fenix lights that see quite a bit of action. Other than replacing the little rubber boot on the switch of the TK11, I have had zero issues with mine. I spend a fair amount of time crawling around in enclosed cargo holds of ships and my Fenix lights have never failed me. The TK11 fell about 20 feet to the tanktop of a ship and still works fine. Perhaps I'm lucky!! -B

About 4.5 years ago I suffered a bit of a setback as the result of diverticulitis and spent a little time in hospital. Since that happened I've done a fair bit of research of food/digestive/nutritional issues. Diverticulitis was virtually unknown until the industrial revolution and is very rare in the non-industrialized countries - where food doesn't come from factories, we digest it better. Unfortunately I lack the intelligence, willpower, and desire to follow the completely perfect diet. I do however make the effort. Meat is a compliment to the meal, not the bulk of it; fresh local produce is better than the stuff with miles on it; I make my own whenever I can rather than buy the processed alternatives; etc. While I don't fast/cleanse per se, I do get a lot of mileage out of my juicer. The best advice I can give - don't be a shithead. If you love bacon, eat it once in a while, buy the good stuff or make your own (it's easy). Don't like vegetables? Grow up. -B ps. Zingerman's Deli in Ann Arbor Michigan has a mail order bacon of the month club - I highly recommend it

Just thought I'd chime in with some holiday cheer, too. Hopefully everyone will be spending the holidays with the ones they care about. All the best for 2012!! -B

I tried to make bacon a few weeks back, I documented it here: http://www.thedudecooks.com/2011/10/hom ... art-1.html .... because guys like me that always talk about food aren't quite annoying enough, I write about it. -B

I thought it was the side of a late 70s conversion van. -B

I cook a lot. Likely more than most folks. For me cooking is a way of keeping myself sane. Over the last few years I've helped real professional cooks, consulted on a few projects, developed recipes.... blah, blah, blah. I'd say I have a couple thousand hours behind the apron. As such, I'm proud to say, I'm about halfway to being mediocre. Cooking for a family is an admirable skill we should all possess. Cooking for paying customers in an artistic science that very few people will ever command. -Brad ... looking forward to my late autumn pig butchering....

mneMoNic for spelling mnemonic = "the way it sounds but starts with m"......... Sorry, couldn't help it. [:-graduat -B

I just got back in this morning after being out of town for a couple days. In my waiting mail there was a flyer from ITM - they have the Testo 875-1 for $2395. Buy it and they'll give you a fibre optic scope and an anemometer/light meter. -B

That seems to make sense. A couple years ago when I was in the market for an imager, all the American distributors quoted ITAR as a reason for not shipping to me. A call to Customs & Border Patrol told me that I'd need documentation to cross the border with the imager in my posession or I'd risk prosecution. Chances are that the authorities are now realizing that home inspectors don't pose much threat! I have since crossed the border with the imager, but I hold a visa allowing me to work in the US as well as documentation explaining why I carry it. -B

I don't have any experience with the Testo, but I did go through something similar a few years ago. Because thermal imagers have the potential and capacity to be used for military use they fall under the International Trafficking in Arms (ITAR) Act. Because of this they can't be shipped across the border to the end user. I had to get documentation showing what I use the thing for just to be able to cross the border with it. FWIW I bought a Fluke from their Canadian distributor - ITM Instruments. -B

No longer amazed but amply impressed. -B

Speaking as a guy who spends more time inspecting ships than houses these days, I agree with Mr. Kibbel. Hickinbotham Bros. was an American shipbuilder. -B

We used to have a bunch of photo radar here in Ontario. Toronto was full of them. Folks argued that the cams were a violation of our rights or something to that effect. The cameras were all removed, law enforcement is again the domain of law enforcement officers. -B

Plenty of crows around here. This is from Wikipedia, Essex is about 15 minutes from my place: "Essex is known regionwide for its large crow population. It is speculated that the town was founded adjacent to a massive crow rookery that, despite efforts to destroy or relocate the nesting ground, thrives to this day. Strangely, the crows boundaries seem tightly closed around the town; though the birds will occasionally venture into surrounding areas." On any given day (ok, every given day) you'll see thousands of them, but only in Essex. -B

I was called to look at a split face block bldg this morning. To make things more interesting, the two storey windows and the surrounding blocks protruded about 2.5 inches from the face of the building. Water was bleeding from the holes in the window frames. -B