Chronicles of Able Man

Prologue

What is an Able Man? It’s really sad that you need to ask – society used to be riddled with them. There used to be hordes of educated, capable people who worked hard day in and day out, simply to provide a better future for themselves and their children. They never said stupid things like “You can’t do it like that!” or “That’s too much trouble for me”, or “I just want to sit on the couch and watch TV” (I guess the equivalent in the 19th century would be sitting on a field and staring at sheep).

Also, people used to be proud not of what others thought of them, rather of what they had accomplished. People used to be judged by their merits, and not by their ability to cheat, manipulate, babble or make a spectacle of themselves. This was because we didn’t steal from those able, to support the behaviour of those lazy. Anyway, an Able Man (or Woman) is just that – a person who knows how to do what they want to do, and practices that skill proudly. It is a person who focuses on doing things, not talking about them. A person who loves to see things completed, and is never afraid to carry the burden and responsibility of getting something done themselves.

Since I am going to dedicate this section simply to things I have done, and all things we do take time, I figured a time-measuring device would be a good symbol for the whole project. Also, I realized I haven’t had a working watch for quite a while, having started to adopt the ridiculous habit of using the built in clock on my cell phone. So I went out and bought myself a nice watch, and in all honesty it didn’t cost that much.

1901 Waltham Pocket Watch

I did decide to pay a few bucks extra to get one made of silver. Heck, if you can’t have a proper watch, then don’t have one at all. Since I wasn’t sure how far I should turn the key to make it run for twenty four hours, I’ve had to experiment. First, I tried 10 “clicks” (hold it to your ear, and it clicks). That made it tick for about 1.5 hours. Having learned at least basic math (no thanks to my public schooling…), that made me figure I should turn it at least 160 clicks. But hold on here, a spring will need increasing amounts of force the more you pull/push it, so that isn’t correct! Since I also know basic physics, I realized that were I to turn it 160 clicks, that may be too much, and I may accidentally break it. So instead, I turned it 20 “clicks”. And then 40. Followed by 80. And currently, it’s ticking away having just been turned 100 clicks, and I’m pretty sure that will make it last at least 24 hours. I figure I will check it tomorrow evening, and if it has moved at least 24 hours, all I need to figure out is how to adjust it to the current time. See, these things don’t come with a manual, and instead of pestering someone else, I decided to figure it out myself.

So, this is the prologue to the Chronicles of Able Man. There will be a few posts every now and then, starting off soon with one about gardening, and one about how to drive a motorcycle in ten degrees, heavy rain and winds at 15 meters per second. All useful things I’ve learned the last year.

Chronicles (I) : Agriculture is for everyone
The result of one spring and summer trying to figure out how to grow things became the first chronicle, available here.

Chronicles (II) : How to help when people collapse
A few bits of information about what to do if people suddenly pass out, or have a seizure, since this seems to happen around me every now and then. You should of course consult a medical professional for expert advise, but here are some pointers on how to act if someone takes a nosedive in front of your feet. Available here.

Chronicles (III) : Stop being a wuss!
Working out is not for intellectual people, you say? It’s okay to be fat, weak or broken down because moving around is “annoying”. Only meatheads do regular work-outs? Nerds get a free pass because of their superior intellect? Think again. Available here.