He told me this morning that he has untreatable stage 4 stomach cancer and doesn't expect a recovery.
He is a man of the sort much talked about in the Planning forum over the years, the Competent Man that Heinlein's Lazuras Long was referring to who could "change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog ..."
Patience wrote:I've done logging and made furniture with hand tools (I still have the tools), farmed and logged with horses and used only firewood heat most of my life, and raised 2 VERY capable kids (married to capable mates that currently "walk the walk" we're discussing. I"m getting old (61), so I'll have to trade skills for hard work, and sometimes get help from kids. I can still down a buck and put it on my plate, along with garden stuff, tree fruit, etc. I've smoke/salt cured meat, made soap, candles and EVERY tool I need, given only imputs of scrap iron (plentiful), and coal (got a ton) or charcoal (I can make that). Not worth a damn at fishing but my daughter is. I've made and used box traps and brain tanned leather. I've made farm equipment of wood and iron, with forge and an axe. There's wheat growning in my patch out back, corn and veggies next spring, and plenty of food stored. We have a cistern/hand pump, and a river over the hill. My machine shop will work as long as I can get gas or electric, then I can still run the blacksmith shop.
But he also understands each of us have a niche and didn't argue that his was the only right way.
The choice of where to ride out the storms we see coming should be made considering our personal fit to a given situation
So I wish you a good trip, Patience.
Thank you for your contributions here, I'm confident you have influenced others as much as you did me.
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