Winter prep

People who live in cold northern climates know that summer is the time to get ready for winter. You don’t start looking for firewood when there’s snow on the ground. In the old days it was a matter of life or death. If you didn’t have your firewood and food stored by the end of summer, you might not survive the winter.

Currently we have the advantage of ships and trucks bringing goods from all over the world. Instead of counting turnips to see if there will be enough until spring, we can eat bananas from South America.

This year my efforts are going towards being ready to head south for the winter. I now have a tow vehicle for the boat. My lovely wife and I are doing repairs and upgrades to the sailboat. Our camping gear is sorted out. We are knocking off the jobs that have to be done before we leave.

I’ve made it very clear to people that if you need my help for something, it better before October. That might seem like a long ways out, but it isn’t. Time has a way of slipping by. My fear is that by the end of September everyone will remember they need my help with something. That could get interesting.

With that in mind, I’m hoping to get all my critical stuff done before the end of August. That gives me a little leeway if things are delayed. It would be just my like to have two weeks of steady rain when there are outside projects to do.

Just to complicate matters there are still some jobs that need to be done just in case I’m stuck up north. Anything from a family emergency to a health crisis could change my plans. With that in mind I’m also making at least some minimal preparations for winter. You never know.

-Sixbears