Week 4 of 2017 was a bit hectic for me but not so much around the Suburban Steader Homestead.  Curious why? Well, it started with a trip to the AFC Championship Game and then a snowboard trip to upper Vermont.  Come find out all about my adventures!

This Week’s Milestones

Last week was full of unique milestones around the Suburban Steader Homestead.  This week was a bit different in that I hit a few personal milestones.

AFC Championship Game

Fair Warning – this section has nothing to do with homesteading, so feel free to jump ahead.

You know that I’m a huge New England Patriots fan if you’ve spent any time on the Suburban Steader Facebook page.  I grew up in one of the towns next to their stadium and could even hear concerts at the stadium in the summer if the nights were quiet enough and my lake was calm enough.  As a child of the ‘80s, I suffered through many horrible seasons so this run since roughly 2000 has been really nice to be a part of.

Anyway, late last Friday I got a call from an old college friend.  He had two extra tickets to the game from a vendor and asked if I wanted them (he was already going).  Oh, did I mention they were for free?!? I found out my brother would be in town (he lives on Nantucket), so we took them!

Long story short, we had a great time tailgating and cheering on boys as they completely owned the game.  Props to the Pittsburgh Steelers – they played a good game but were not on the same level as the Patriots.  More importantly, however, I want to give major props to the Pittsburgh fans.  They were all over the stadium and were awesome.  Super friendly and congratulatory at the end of the game.  Good people.  I have had the chance to work with folks in the Pittsburgh area in my last job and have to say that they are some of the best people in the world.

So, my boys are off to Houston for the Super Bowl and I couldn’t be happier.  The trip to the AFC Championship Game was a once in a lifetime opportunity and I am so happy I got to spend it with my brother.  That was truly a treat in and of itself.

Annual Snowboard Trip

What you probably don’t know about me is that, in college, I was a huge snowboarder and wakeboarder.  I also co-founded a wakeboarding festival called the WICed Fest.  It has since turned into an annual snowboard trip.  This year was our 18th annual trip.

The boys on this trip have truly become my “brothers from other mothers.”  I’ve been in some of their weddings, some of them were in mine.  I’m referred to as “Uncle Dan” by their kids and so on.

We headed up to Burke Mountain in Burke, VT.  Unfortunately, we hit some pretty bad weather.  It rained during our trip and that caused not only icy conditions but delayed openings.  That was OK though since it is one of the only times every year where we all see each other.  We got to hang out and catch up.  Good time overall.

Blog Work

I kept the blog rolling this week with a guest post about the kind of tactical gear you wish you had.  It was an interesting piece but I’m not sure that’s where the blog should be going.

Let me know if the comments if you like this kind of article or if you’d rather I concentrate on other topics.

Next Week’s Goals

This coming week will be interesting.  Early on in the trip, I took a fall and really bruised my tailbone (perhaps broke it).  I’ve been icing and using Dr. Christopher’s Formula Complete Tissue and Bone Ointment.  It was recommended by Jack Spirko on The Survival Podcast so we’ll see how it work.  Regardless, the fall is limiting what I can do around the house.  I think this week will be more planning than work.

I’m going to go through my seeds and finalize the garden plans.  The place should be complete by the end of the week and any necessary seeds on order.  I might even start some of my seeds this week as well.

The blog will continue to have an original article on Tuesday and a wrap-up on Friday.

Long Term Plans

I’m still looking at the shed as a long-term project.  It will probably sit until the next time my father is down.  His advice on the inside and outside conditions will be paramount to exactly what we’ll do to it.  But, rest assured, I’ll keep you in the loop and will probably document it all.

Week 4 is in the books everyone!  Can you believe it? Almost a full month already gone in 2017.

What projects around the Suburban Steader Homestead would you like to see me tackle in 2017? Let me know in the comments!

Dan

Founder/Owner at Suburban Steader

I am a middle-age guy with a wife, two young kids and a crazy dog. We live on Long Island, NY and had an interesting experience with Hurricane Sandy. That experience led me towards the self-sufficiency movement and eventually led to the founding of SuburbanSteader.com. I aim to provide suburbanites with the confidence and know-how to become more self-reliant by providing content on topics such as gardening, personal health, financial responsibility, cooking, self-preparedness and self-protection.