Well, after looking around at flea markets, researching various ideas, and literally weighing the options, I’ve opted to build what I need. Now, how to do that with a manual screwdriver, a hammer, and absolutely no carpentry skills. In a phrase reminiscent of one of my childhood heroes, Dr. Leonard…
Highways, Byways & Hedges
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Let the Build-Out Begin
Deciding what one needs in a vehicle one is going to live in encourages much thought and planning. You have little space to work with and every square inch counts. I don’t want to mess with the flooring, the walls or the windows. The Kraken is pretty nice and reasonably…
Highways, Byways & Hedges
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VanLife: The Memorial of the Kraken’s BuildDay
It was cleaning day and also, I would discover, the build date or birthday of the Kraken. He turned 23 today! Happy BuildDay old fellow! Interestingly enough it was also the Feast of St. Chad today. St. Chad lived in the 7th century and was not a flashy man. He…
Highways, Byways & Hedges
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#VanLife Meet the Kraken
Meet the Kraken in his YouTube debut.My 1995 Ford Econoline E150 Club Wagon Chateau
Highways, Byways & Hedges
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New Beginnings
About two months have passed since I purchased the Kraken and our journey together began. After bringing him home I discovered some that perhaps the Kraken was possibly possessed or he had electrical problems. We went to my mechanic and I introduced them to one another. My mechanic was perplexed…
How Happy Are You?
I’ve been watching lots of #VanLife videos on YouTube of late and for the most part there are a couple common themes running through them: the absolute happiness of the people participating in #VanLife and the sense of freedom they feel in doing so. While I’m sure there are those…
Highways, Byways & Hedges
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The Kraken Rises
“Let Loose the Kraken!” is a catchy memorable command shouted by Zeus in the 1981 fantasy film called The Clash of the Titans and hearkens back to the time of Homer’s Odyssey and the travails of Odysseus. It conjures up images of grey tentacled beasts from the depths of the…
Poetry, Prose & Prayer
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After the Dinner Party by Robert Penn Warren
After the Dinner PartyBy Robert Penn Warren You two sit at the table late, each, now and then,Twirling a near-empty wine glass to watch the last redLiquid climb up the crystalline spin to the last moment whenCentrifugality fails: with nothing now said. What is left to say when the last…
Highways, Byways & Hedges
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Meet Peregrine: Notes from the Trail
Meet Peregrine: Notes from the Trail By +Brian Ernest Brown, CWC Meet Peregrine a 2017 Giant Escape City, my new bike. Named after St. Peregrine the Martyr who refused to worship the emperor. (Today’s Trump) Named after St. Peregrine of Auxerre due to his Champagne color. Named after the Peregrine Falcon…
Reflections, Musings & Meanderings
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The Garden Before Grace
The Garden Before Grace By +Brian Ernest Brown, CWC Twenty-seven years ago, on a Summer Solstice long ago, I completed my third-degree initiation within the Wiccan tradition and took vows that felt, at the time, both solemn and eternal. It was a night of deep symbolism and sacred friendship, celebrated…