Fair Access Policy and Tabasco Fencing

Posted on February 6, 2011 by geek 1

I did something unprecedented yesterday: I took a VoIP call over the satellite connection and it actually worked. There was a substantial delay which made a multi-person conference…interesting, to say the least. But it worked.

Well, it worked until the Fair Access Policy kicked in (about 20 minutes). The FAP limits all users to 300Mb per day. Yes, that’s Mb, not Gb. When it comes to the cutting edge technologies that most geeks love to do online, this is a rediculous limit. I can answer email, use my IM, surf the web, download a few mp3s, and watch a YouTube video or two. Other activities, such as online gaming, downloading video of any serious length, backing up my system online, using VoIP for any length of time, or any of the other things that require serious bandwidth, are completely out of the question.

When I reach the FAP limit, the connection slows to a crawl, about 20K, for the rest of the day. For those who work at home like me, this almost guarantees that the work day is over. (It takes 5 minutes to open an email at those speeds.) This means that I have to be quite careful about what I do to ensure that I can get through the day.

I have two options, neither of which is particularly appetizing. I can save the higher bandwidth items for late night downloading, between midnight and 4 am, or pay $100 for 500Mb per day. I’m not wild about either. Who wants to do work at 3 in the morning?

And now, for something completely different…

Earlier today, the draft horses decided that the main posts holding the majority of the fence in place needed to be trimmed. They took it upon themselves to chew the heck out of them. So, the Sister and I decided that we needed to dissuade such behaviour. At first, we tried a corn oil/black pepper concoction. Sunny hated it but Meme (aptly named since everything is about her) thought that the pepper gave the post a lovely marinade and licked the whole thing before continuing her woody feast. We had to try something more persuasive: Tobasco! We broke into (okay, we have a key) the Neighbor’s house and stole some of the pungent stuff. (Yeah, we’ll be replacing it.) It took Meme quite a bit of pole tasting before discovering that it was no longer quite right. There was then hesitation, followed by some lip curling, and then a lot of lip licking. If looks could insult, we would both have been soundly belittled. As of tonight, the post still stands, whole and complete, and the Belgians are out in the far shelter, pouting.

Through all this, the quarter horse watched in boredom, saying, “Really? A fence post for dinner? You’ve got to be kidding.”

Country Living Expo

Posted on January 31, 2011 by geek 1

Short of researching all the different aspects of rural life, where can you go to learn all the things you need to know to be self-sufficient? Yesterday, I had a delightful time at the Country Living Expo & Cattlemen’s Winterschool, where they offered all manner of classes and chances to hang out with the community. I took 5 of the 160 classes offered and I learned a lot, everything from acceptable business plan debt-to-income ratios to how to get your dog interested in catching frisbees.

Oh, Max just turned around and said, “Catch what? I think not.” Ah, thwarted before I’ve even started.

The Sister got some great advice on growing giant pumpkins and how to rid the garden of tomato blight. She found a gentleman who knew more about maintaining pastures than God and they talked about small tractor attachments. Then I found her stuck with all the horse people, loathe to leave. I chatted with members of Slow Food Port Susan, talked with a horse trainer, bought a book about Open Gate Farm, petted an alpaca, admired the latest Massey-Ferguson equipment, (all our tractors are M-Fs), found an exciting new magazine (Grow Northwest), and noshed on Prime Rib followed by cookies baked by FFA members.

In stark contrast to all the political haranguing I hear on the radio or read in the papers, this event combined groups that traditionally sit on both sides of the aisle. Everyone learned so much and had a great time celebrating the country life, whether vegan or carnivore, conventional or organic farmer. We all play well together.

Every year, this expo grows by a couple hundred people. The interest in self-sufficiency and small farming is becoming much more prevalent. Whether it’s from the economic times or an interest in healthier foods, it’s exciting to see.

Broadband? What’s that?

Posted on January 28, 2011 by geek 1

After listening to the State of the Union address, and hearing the President’s mention of bringing broadband access to rural places, I have one question: what does he mean by broadband? If you can’t use Skype, is it still broadband? What about streaming videos, connecting to virtual private networking, or playing World of Warcraft? If you can’t conference online, what use is it for your small business or farm?

The President was talking about wireless broadband covering our rural spaces. Will it provide these kinds of services, the ones suburban America already enjoys? Satellite certainly doesn’t. Cellphone wireless won’t provide many of them, especially VoIP. In the State of the Union fact sheet, it only discusses high-speed internet, without giving specifications or a timeline of any kind.

It will be interesting to see how this initiative will take shape. Here’s my hope for the best.

Snow Musings

Posted on January 9, 2011 by geek 1

A number of my more geekish friends often ask me why I live so far out in the country. Why don’t I move closer to the city, where they have real amenities, like electricity and plumbing. (Ah, they kid because they love… Of course we have electricity and plumbing. We even have TV out here. Sheesh! The only thing we don’t have is decent internet access.)

Tonight, as I was taking the baby dog out for his last perambulation before retiring, it started to snow. Everything was quiet and dark, except for the little patch of light we were standing in. The snowflakes emerged from the dark sky and landed on my face, ever so gently. It was beautiful, watching them sparkle as they drifted down. I can’t tell you how many moments like this I have experienced out here in the country: deer walking into the pasture for a twilight snack, eagles down at the river arguing over a catch, onions growing huge in my little garden, the horses rolling in the summer grass and shaking their great blonde manes once they are upright. During our last cold spell, I would go out at night and stare at the spectacular Milky Way across a vast black sky. No one in the city can do that. It can’t bee seen from there.

It’s worth the long commutes and the expensive, almost inadequate access to the internet just to experience moments like these. Even though I’m certifiably nerdy, I know that sometimes reality on the farm is better than all the video games and high tech tools in the world.

Census of Agriculture – 2007

Posted on January 1, 2011 by geek 1

The USDA conducts a census of agriculture every five years, detailing the current state of food production at a national level. The latest is from 2007. Some of the statistics are surprising, even eye-opening. I find some of the charts especially intriguing.

The chart of Average Age of Pricipal Farm Operators shows that there are few farmers under the age of 55. This means that within the next 10 to 15 years, a large majority of farmers will reach retirement age or will get to the point in their lives where they’ll not be able to farm full time. What happens to their farms when that happens?

Young farmers (or farmer wannabees) can’t afford to buy or even lease enough land to make a living. They end up working at a job they don’t want to do in order to eventually have enough money to do what they want, namely, farming. Then they must continue working in order to maintain their health insurance and other benefits, while farming. Their best, most productive years, the 20s, 30s and 40s, are spent not farming. It’s unfortunate.

Two of the charts: Percent of Farms Operated by Family or Individual and Percent of Farms with High-Speed Internet Access, have almost an exact inverse correlation. It’s uncanny. If the land is primarily dedicated to small farms, there is no access to VoIP, online video training, or a whole host of tools that can really promote farms and make them more successful. This correlation does not hold true for large, corporate-held farms, however.

If you want to see more charts, go here.

Can’d write wit a code…

Posted on December 30, 2010 by geek 1

Really, I take a few days off and get a cold. Swell. The unfortunate part of that is the writer’s block that a cold causes. Seriously, why can’t my brain function when the sinuses go into overdrive? It’s sad but true.

The one thing I will say is that no one, even those who promised it would be here by the end of the year, has been able to provide broadband to my section of the county. No one. Lots of promises; no reality.

Lord, I hate having a cold…

Floods and Swans

Posted on December 16, 2010 by geek 1

On Sunday, the Stillaguamish valley flooded. Fortunately, the preparations, sandbags, and temporary berms mitigated much of the damage that could have happened. The aftermath, though, was pretty amazing. The river picked up just everything and threw it around. I had to dodge the odd refrigerator as I drove down a newly unswamped road on my way to work. It was surreal.

There was one amazing site, though. The tundra swans who annually migrate here took advantage of the flooded fields to go for a luxurious swim. Whole flocks of these huge, white birds were floating around the wide, water-logged fields. I felt like I was driving through a massive lake without end, surround by swans.

O Canada

Posted on December 10, 2010 by geek 1

Yes, I’ve been bad about keeping up with the blog, but I’ve been doing a bit of vacationing over Thanksgiving. I traveled to Vancouver, B.C., and enjoyed the congenial ambience of Canadian hospitality. Seriously, I adore Canadians.

British Columbia is experiencing the same food revolution we are having in northwest Washington. There are more local, organic, artisanal farmers springing up all over and folks are gaining a greater appreciation for real food. I saw that everywhere I went in Vancouver. (What a great town! Everyone should visit there, if only to see how proper governance creates better living. But I digress…)

Anyway, I will try to write more, time allowing.

…and still, we wait…

Posted on December 10, 2010 by geek 1

It’s almost half way through December and I still am not seeing signs of a broadband connection darkening my front door any time soon. Sigh…musn’t give into geek despair. It’s the dark side, where they don’t serve cookies.