Upside-Down in Time

Desiree and I have spent the better part of two days on airplanes and in airports. Today, we find ourselves in Manila, in the Philippines, upside-down in time and suddenly swimming in heat.

Manila has survived earthquakes, fires, and one of the most devastating urban battles of World War II: the 1945 Battle of Manila. The city was nearly flattened.

Now it rises taller than ever, a blend of old Spanish churches, American-era buildings, and glass towers coexisting in an architectural conversation that sometimes argues loudly.

Our final layover took us to Incheon International Airport in Seoul, South Korea. Both Desiree and I find that Incheon has a festive aura, just like Fremont Street in Las Vegas.

I’m sharing a photograph of Desiree in the concourse at Incheon. Please note: for the immediate future, my blogs may come at you inconsistently for a variety of reasons, including the time difference between us and connectivity challenges.

—Mitchell Hegman

A Winter Hot Tub Cleaning

We conducted a full-on draining and cleaning of our hot tub. What makes this blog-worthy is the fact that our island girl climbed right inside the tub and towel-dried the inside, barefoot and without heavy winter garb, on a winter day.

That’s some pure Montana stuff there.

I’ve posted a photograph of Desiree at work, with the snowy landscape all around her. 

Desiree in the Hot Tub

—Mitchell Hegman

The Blog I Never Thought I Would Write

This is a tough one, folks. I’m about to make a revelation akin to telling a kid Santa Claus isn’t real. I’m not entirely sure how this happened. Did the belt slip on my critical-thinking conveyor? Did an elbow crack somewhere in my everything-considered piping system?

Whatever the cause, Cold Smoke Beer no longer reigns unchallenged as the absolute king of post-chore refreshment. There are now moments when I reach, of all things, for Kirkland coconut water instead of a Cold Smoke.

I have no explanation. Only evidence.

And apparently, electrolytes.

A Cold Smoke and Coconut Water

—Mitchell Hegman

Free Shipping

I don’t know why you’re still hesitating. For $72,800.00, the Unitree G1 Humanoid AI Avatar robot can be yours. It does back flips. It does front flips. Tariffs are included. Shipping is free. What more could a reasonable person want?

G1 Humanoid

—Mitchell Hegman

Falling Out of Bed

Here’s a question: when was the last time you fell out of bed and woke up later on the floor? For me, that would be the night before last. I woke sprawled out on the floor long after midnight.

The house is a different place from floor level. For a few seconds, I thought I had been plunked down on a new planet.

Strange stuff.

Once I determined I was still on Earth, I crawled back into bed and had a great night of sleep.

—Mitchell Hegman

Babies Lifting Heavy Stuff

While hauling a 5-gallon bucket of split wood for the woodstove, I noticed a warning on the side. Though the bucket originally held cat litter, the label shows it partially filled with water and what appears to be a toddler attempting to lift and carry it. This is not a job for a toddler. Obviously, this is a job for big people.

Below that image is another written warning stating that children can drown in a bucket with only a little water in it.

Good to know.

Safety Warning

—Mitchell Hegman

The Nut

While sweeping around the woodstove, Desiree found what looked like a 3/8” nut on the floor. She immediately showed it to me.

“That’s not good,” I said. Noting the nut’s dark color, I added, “It looks like it might be from the woodstove.”

My first thought was the nut might have come from the door handle, but a quick glance at that proved the handle was intact. My next thought turned to the air intake damper, which is located at the bottom of the stove. Having a compromised damper is what my buddy Rodney would term “ungood.”

An operating damper is required to control how hot the fire burns. If the damper failed closed, the fire would struggle to climb. If the damper failed in the fully open position, the fire might quickly drive the temperature to over 1000°F.

The damper seemed fully functional, but I still felt fairly concerned. I waded online and found an exploded view of the damper parts. No nuts there.

Yesterday morning I stopped at the shop where I purchased the stove and consulted with the experts. “I don’t think it’s from the stove,” one of them concluded, “but I would hang onto it just the same.”

One other possibility existed: the iron fireplace toolset holding the poker and other tools. When I got home after visiting the shop, I inspected the toolset and stand.

Bingo.

The nut came from under the base of the stand.

Naturally, this provided me with an opportunity to grab a Cold Smoke beer to pose with the nut for a sense of size. The perfect way to end a mystery.

The Nut

The Toolset Stand

—Mitchell Hegman