Obligatory, 5.24.18

Another data spike, and another day to stand down.  So, yesterday was an off day,
and I didn't post.  I try to put up something every day, but that wasn't in the
cards yesterday.

Even today, I have to be careful with the usage, or I could be back in the dog
house.

It seems that I haven't been posting on the off-grid project lately.  Most of
my interest is in getting my financial house in order.  It is a big problem.

So, I spend some time working for money each week.  But the amounts are not that
impressive, and besides, I am constrained.  That said, I will need a lot of time
to get this massive bill paid down.

There are options, which I won't go into here.  Let's just say that I have been
spending a lot of time thinking about this.  No solution is in sight, but not
all hope is lost as far as the off-grid project is concerned.

Nope, to the contrary.  I feel a second wind coming on.  So, the ideas continue
to percolate.  Maybe a bit more slowly than I would like, but it is still alive.

The egg cooker is a neat little device.  Yesterday, I cooked some ground pork
with it.  A great deal of care needs to be taken with meat, as must get fully
cooked, and the clean up afterwards is one thing that I am trying to avoid.

Veggies could be steamed with this thing.  Haven't tried it yet, but there is
no doubt to me that it could be done.  So, eggs aren't the only game in town
for this little gizmo.  I am starting to really like it.

This could be useful in the off-grid application.  It doesn't use that much power,
and could be used with a solar panel.  Make that solar panel do some real work
for a change!  Durn straight.

BTW, I got some pointers on how to build a sound structure awhile back.  His
ideas aren't necessarily what I will do, however.  The main idea is to use
footer foundations.  But I want to make it into 8 foot sections instead of the
bigger ones he suggested.  That way, I won't have to do a lot of cutting.

Indeed, I decided to make 8x8 foot sections, and connect them together.  If you
do three of these, you get an 8x24 foot structure.  Tie three of these together,
and you have a 24x24 foot structure, and then you are talking business.

The 24x24 would be a bit ambitious, though.  I could make the overhangs as
four foot extensions instead of eight.  Those two would flank each side of
the structure.  Maybe more on the south side than the north, however.  That
could make it a 12x24 foot structure.  Think of the south side as a deck or
a porch.  It could be screened in, in order to protect from the insects.

A glass roof extension could be made to make it a 16x24 foot structure.  The
glass would be the side furtherest south, so as to allow sunshine in during
the winter months.  The other four feet would be the overhang, which would keep
the sun off in the summer.  The screen would allow wind to blow through, which
would keep the thing from getting too hot.

I'd like to cogitate further on that, but this is what I have at the moment.

The actual building will take place next year at the earliest.  I might consider
moving to an apartment in El Paso for six months in order to get located closer,
but not actually on the property while I build the thing out.

The cost of living in El Paso is lower than Austin, so this might be feasible.

Anyway, the project is not dead by any means.  Still thinking it through.

That is all.