by Al Christensen | Jun 29, 2022 | Budget, Vans
I’VE BEEN CONTEMPLATING what to do about my aging van. New engine or a different van with lower mileage? So the past few months I’ve been checking out various used vehicle sites. Used car prices had been shooting up the past couple of years—about 42% since 2020....
by Al Christensen | Jun 25, 2022 | Cooking, Heating
ALTHOUGH IT WAS THE END OF MAY, and the daytime temperature on the Kiabab Plateau had been almost perfect, it had dropped to nearly freezing by dawn. Not a surprise at that elevation at that time of year. I reluctantly crawled out from under the covers and got out my...
by Al Christensen | Jun 20, 2022 | Solar Power, Staying Cool or Warm
UP UNTIL THE LATTER HALF OF THE 20TH CENTURY, our ancestors (and some of us old farts who’ve been around since the discovery of dirt) lived without air conditioning. The first air conditioner was probably the one installed in the Rivloi Theater, in New York City, in...
by Al Christensen | Jun 18, 2022 | Solar Power, Staying Clean
NASA ANNOUNCED its InSight lander will run out of power in a few months because its solar panels have become covered with many years of Martian dust. Meanwhile, my solar panel is covered with many days of New Mexico dust and fire ash. Cleanliness is next to...
by Al Christensen | Jun 18, 2022 | Colorado, Photography
Perfect spot — 4 August 2016 — San Juan Mountains style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7662527707655081" data-ad-slot="8472325861" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7662527707655081"...