Touring the Oregon Coast

~ George Crawford ~ 4 Comments

It was great to escape the heat, dust, and chaos that is my normal life these days.  Oregon was everything I hoped for and more.  The Pacific air brought back many good memories and made me yearn again to live near this amazing coast.

102_0305The weather was perfect, the water was cold, and the seafood abundant.

102_0311My blood is too thick for the southern plains and this trip was an excellent respite from the drying winds of the Llano Estacado.

102_0331We spent three days just walking on the beaches and retreating to the woods to camp with little concern for the outside world.  The rest of the time we ventured around northwest Oregon and southwest Washington and just generally loafing about.

102_0348Debris from Japan was apparent on the shore and hinted at a tragic but interesting story.

102_0355It was great to travel with friends who know the region and could steer us in the right direction to get the most out of our short visit.

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102_0369Twenty years ago I was certain that I would spend my life in the Pacific Northwest.  Events transpired, or failed to, to allow this to happen and I have been drifting in the west for a long time now.  Every time I see and smell the Pacific, I’m ready to settle down and grow some moss.

102_0377It is certainly a rugged beauty but in a bountiful land.

102_0378I will definitely be back.  Hopefully without too much delay.

Tavern Interior by John S.C. Schaak 1762

~ George Crawford ~ Leave a comment

Jon Townsend's avatarSifting The Past

Tavern Interior_John-S-C-Schaak_1762John S.C. Schaak  active 1760-1770

Video walkthrough:

Detail: tavern, chair, table, basket, food, sideboard, meat, pie, plate, knife, fork, fire, hearth, fireplace crane, cucumber, lemon sausage, meat hook, beef, bird, bird cage, bottle, glass, bread, mortar and pestle, chocolate pot, spit turner, soldier, cooking pot, tongs, serving boy, raised cooking surface, fry pan, jug, game birds, rabbit

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Taller De Curtiduria González – Vegetable Tanning the Best Huarache Leathers

~ George Crawford ~ Leave a comment

huaracheblog's avatarHuarache Blog

Unlike almost all of mainstream footwear, Huarache leather is still vegetable tanned using wood. Few tanneries in the world still offer vegetable tanned leathers because of the slower tanning process and higher raw material costs.

Not only are the wood and organic matter used to tan the leather renewable, but the vegetable tanning solution doesn’t create toxic carcinogenic bi-products such as Chromium IV to which tannery workers and waterways can be exposed to.

The natural benefits of vegetable tanned leather are that the organic tanning process has a much lesser environmental impact and the leather maintains some of its natural quality to stretch and adapt to your foot shape.

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Jesús and Antonio González the father and son tanners still practice this traditional and centuries old tanning method and unlike modern tanneries still tan by hand.

They are considered by many local Huaracheros to be the best vegetable tannery in the Mexican state of…

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Casual Turtle Campers

~ George Crawford ~ 5 Comments

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAIf you are looking for a topper or small camper with some class, check out Casual Turtle Campers.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAFrom the website:

The idea for Casual Turtle Campers was conceived by Peter Pavlowich in the summer of 2010. On a road trip to Colorado, he noticed an abundance of truck campers but a profound lack of variety or style.  As a Wood Construction and Design graduate from the University of Idaho, he believed he could design and build a simple and attractive alternative to the big, heavy, white boxes that he seemed to see everywhere. Over the next few years, Peter slowly and methodically brought together ideas and drew up plans for what would eventually become the design for Casual Turtle Campers. 

He very happily lives in Fort Collins, Colorado with his wife, Lindsey, and their dog/shop foreman, Moxie.  We love when people stop by – just get in touch!

http://casualturtlecampers.com/

An Excursion to Water Canyon

~ George Crawford ~ Leave a comment

George Crawford's avatarTHE ACCIDENTAL ARCHAEOLOGIST

A tardy post.

Several weeks back I, along with David Kilby, was fortunate to be asked to come help with an excavation in  central New Mexico. The project was the brainchild of Robert Dello-Russo from the New Mexico Office of Archaeological Studies.  Since funding is always an issue with this type of research, this was very much a volunteer-based project, bringing in archaeological professionals and skilled avocationals from around the state.

The project area is west of Socorro, New Mexico between two mountain ranges.  There is a surprising amount of energetic water that comes from the mountains to the west, moving enormous amounts of sediment, and sometimes very large cobbles and pebbles.  This has created a sort of geologic fan that covers the very old Paleoindian and other paleontological deposits.  All of this is overlaid with severalmeters of fine silt making the targeted materials extremely difficult to access.

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Does This Thingy Add Value…

~ George Crawford ~ 1 Comment

A new post from the Minimalists.

“I don’t own many things. But everything I own adds value to my life.

Each of my belongings—my kitchenware, furniture, clothes, car—functions either as a tool or gives some sort of positive aesthetic value to my life. That is, as a minimalist, every possession serves a purpose and/or brings me joy.

Over time, though, situations’ll change. They always do. And so I’m forced to ask the same important question over and over and over again: Does this thing add value to my life?

And but it’s not just material possessions at which I posit this query. I ask it, too, in regard to relationships, social media, and any other potentially superfluous matters in life” emphasis added.

Good things to ponder as we just absorb everything, new and old, around us.

Read the whole post here or, better yet, check out their other writings:

http://www.theminimalists.com/