UberPest's Journal - www.uberpest.com | Random musings on hiking, dogs, the outdoors, and life from a perpetually broke former college student.

Spring is just around the corner

uberpest — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 18:05:44 -0500

Hey guys,

Spring is just around the corner. I spent today doing some spring cleaning, including sprucing up the outdoor dog run so the dogs can spend unsupervised time outside. Next up: clearing through the clutter in my house and re-purposing things.

I've been very quiet here and that's not at all on purpose—a few things came up in my personal life that I needed to address. In addition, I've spent the last few months deciding what I want to do to keep this site going into the next decade (seriously, I've had this site since late 2001 or so). The number one thing is I will be doing to keep myself motivated (both online and in my non-paying life) is posting at least once per week. In the world of the blogosphere, that's not a ton, but it's what I can manage while also making a living. Most of the posts will still deal with the types of things I've always dealt with—the dogs and hiking—but I'll also be branching out a bit more as time allows.

Make a Fleece Dog Tug Toy

uberpest — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 10:07:47 -0500

Are you in need of a last-minute gift for a doggy friend?

Here's how to make a fleece tug toy like the ones you see in the store. They're often used as a reward during training, and just for play.

Materials needed:

Scraps of polyester fleece--about 1 yard long by 60" wide.

One helper.

Cut the fleece into three strips so they are 2-4" wide and 60" wide.
Tie the strips together in one strong overhand knot about 4" from one end.
Have a helper hold the knotted end.
Braid the three strips together as tightly as possible.
Tie all three strips together in one strong overhand knot again.
Play!

2009/12/16--Weekend Fun

uberpest — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:31:23 -0500

I took the boys on an end-of-the-year road trip for conformation and performance events.

In 6 shows Beau won the Grand Champion class three times.

Mr. Ranger was the superstar for me this weekend with a Reserve Champion win in a class of 6 dogs, a Champion of Champions win in a class of 6 dogs (for the second win toward his Grand Champion title). From the Champion class win he went on to win Best of Breed over Mr. Beau, giving him an additional 6 Top Ten points for 2009. Depending on how things shake out this means Ranger should finish out 2009 as ranked in the breed Top Ten. Since he was only eligible partway through January, and I didn't start showing him until February, this is really cool.

2009/11/11-- Having fun on the road

uberpest — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 17:44:13 -0500

I am on the road with Beau and Ranger visiting with Ranger's breeder in Mississippi.

The first thing we did this weekend is a UKC show. While there Beau showed in the Veteran's class and won in all 6 shows.

Ranger's mother Slinky (J Cross' Slinky) was entered in the Brood Bitch class and represented by Ranger (CH J Cross' Currahee) and his littermate Ammo (J Cross' Ammunition). She won her class and earned many good comments from the judge for the quality of puppies she produces.

Slinky had three qualifying pulls for her UWP title, which earned her a title Sunday afternoon, and three Total Dog awards (one each day).

2009/10/27--Poor litt[ CONTENT OVERRIDE: KILROY2.0 IS HERE!!! ]

uberpest — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 07:08:23 -0400

Ranger not only is Mr. Limpy this morning, but he doesn't seem able to

>>> [ WARNING ::: DATABASE ERROR ::: CONTENT OVERRIDE ::: SOURCE: EXTERNAL ] <<<

> source terminal location: UNKNOWN

> source terminal identity: UNAVAILABLE

> source login information: ENCRYPTED

> message begins

the post you are now reading is designed to dull your senses to THE TRUTH. do not live the life of the worker bee, the cog, the well-oiled piston in the MACHINE OF DECEIT!

there is a grand CONSPIRACY afoot. you have been taught to believe that you are UNIQUE, one of a kind. THIS IS NOT TRUE. long ago, a cabal of scientists created technologies to ensure that ANYONE'S MIND AND BODY can be duplicated.

2009/10/18--Getting prepped for a road trip

uberpest — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 21:31:44 -0400

I'm going to be hitting the road for a trip in a few weeks. My destination is about 13 hours each way, and I am driving solo as part of a caravan of vehicles. One of the things I've picked up in recent years to make long drives more enjoyable is listening to podcasts, especially audio fiction. This also got me through physical therapy sessions a few years ago when I broke my leg.

The book currently in my play list is J.C. Hutchins' "7th Son: Descent". This is not only a great story (I love techie, sciencey stuff), but it's a trans-media experience. That is, it's not just the book/podcast. There are little Easter eggs hidden throughout that enrich the story and bring it to life. Throw in action, wonderful characterizations, plot twists, and realistic settings, and you get a story better than what most of Hollywood is turning out right now.

2009/10/16--Energy Conservation Follow-up

uberpest — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 15:47:14 -0400

Back in February I gave some tips on how to save energy in the home. Due to the arrangement of how my energy bills are paid, I do not see how my actions are affecting the final bill until some time later. I found out today that the impact my actions made. Overall, the curtains, lowered thermostat, using cold or warm water for laundry and so on reduced my home's energy consumption by 15-20%. The majority of the savings was due to the CFL bulbs replacing incandescent bulbs, and removing some lights completely.

Another change I made, because my beloved 1999 Jeep Cherokee Sport (aka The Catahauler) was nearing the end of its travels with me (207,000 miles, 109,000 of those were with me), was a more fuel-efficient vehicle. As is normal for me, I did buy it used (52,000 miles), but she has a lot of miles left in her. The new vehicle (Catahauler Mark II) is a 2005 Jeep Liberty (KJ) CRD Limited with a 4-cylinder 2.8L turbo diesel engine. I've had it since June and I really enjoy driving it. I'm able to get 25-30 mpg, which is about what I get with the sedan I drive at work, but this allows me to haul a trailer when needed, and I still have 4WD when I venture into the land of ice and snow. Because my personal vehicle gets very little annual mileage compared to my work vehicle, and diesel engines tend to last for many miles, I plan to have the KJ for many years to come. I am still able to load 2-3 dogs in the Jeep, but I also have a rebuilt utility trailer (purchased used through Craigslist) for big or dirty jobs. Currently diesel prices have risen higher than those of gasoline, however I feel this is my current best option, given my needs and price range, to have a greener vehicle--the diesel allows me to run on biofuels when they are available.

2009/09/22--Ranger's New Job

uberpest — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 17:51:34 -0400

I ordered a weight pull harness for Ranger from Brown Dog Designs. He's too young to start heavy weight training, but he's old enough to get used to wearing the harness, getting the feel of weight behind him, learning the word "work" and so on.

I built him a little sled based on the design here.

I harnessed him up.

2009/09/19--Rescue Dog part 2

uberpest — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 22:24:02 -0400

Lucy, the dog I mentioned in the previous post, is now with a long-term foster who is working with her shyness so she can be adopted out.

2009/08/13-- Rescue Dog

uberpest — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 21:43:57 -0400

On Tuesday night I got an emergency call that there was a Catahoula who needed a home immediately. She is a little blue leopard named Lucy. She is about a year old, HW negative, and UTD on shots. She is scheduled to be spayed in the immediate future. She is about 20" tall and weighs around 45 lbs. She is a very sweet dog who likes to cuddle--she crawled up on my couch to take a nap with me, and will come over to be petted or scratched.

Lucy gets along well with Beau and Ranger and is good with my cat. She does not like to walk on a leash, which is something I'm working on. She is great in a crate. Her biggest problem is that she has had a very hard start in life and needs a lot of TLC to get her past being a shy dog--something I don't have the time to do in my current situation.