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YOLO a community of American Patriots dedicated to preserving our freedom and way of life. Our mission is to empower individuals of all ages to take control of their lives, protect their values, and preserve their independence.

As a community, we strive to provide a supportive environment where members can share knowledge, ask questions, and learn from one another. Together, we will work towards a brighter future, grounded in our shared values of patriotism, self-reliance, and mutual support.
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Saying good bye to a new-old friend.

Funeral this afternoon, Mel, my neighbor of 21 years died. Wednesday am. Kinda wrecked a few plans we had, like playing cards, grilling steaks, going to gun shows together.

That's where it started ... we'd known each other as 'neighbors' for 15 or so years, he was the 'community reporter' - if something was going on within a 3 mile radius, Mel was the best person to 'get the low down'. He stuck his 84yr old nose into everything. We really limited our contact with him, but, he seemed to know a lot about us from the end-of-the-driveway... kinda annoying! One day we caught his 50'ish daughter feeding something to our cows ... apparently it had been going on a week, thankfully it was just corn.

How it started, maybe it was my 88yr old FIL visiting about 4-5 years ago, we got on the subject of 'reloading' rifle & pistol - knowing both did that, I called over, we went over ... and for the next 3 hours, got the grand tour, watched Mel reload ... one at a time... on his +50 year old, single stage press. The newest thing in his 'reloading room' was the 25 year old door knob... everything he had was really old.

Mel was an Armorer in the Army, between Korea and Vietnam. Once he got started reloading, he just kept it up, 50 rounds here, 100 rounds there - custom loads for friends, and testing them for consistency & accuracy on his 200 yard 'range' - the hay field. He'd tool out to an old Tobacco barn, all shot full of holes on one side, staple or hang a couple of paper targets - and come roaring back on his little 4-wheelier. Setting up on the bench inside the garage, take a few shots, and race back out to look at grouping. No chronograph to measure velocity (bullet speed), nothing electronic in his operation. It was his way he'd been reloading 60 years or more, it worked.

My Father-in-law, asked me one day, maybe 5 years ago, how "Mel was getting along" ... so I gave him a call. Once we got past all the meds, aches & pains of aging, he mentioned sitting around all day in front of the TV. That wasn't good... My wife and I were gonna do something.

We decided, Wife and I, instead of going to gun shows alone, together, we'd invite Mel and his wife along - after overcoming the initial resistance & multiple excuses... he relented and joined us. We knew he needed the exercise, why not..? We walked around, and Mel started sharing his Army stories, reloading, old army guns & his typical lore of his age. On the 2hr ride ride home - the guy wouldn't stop talking! Finally, at his doorstep, "When are we going again...?" That's how it all got started. The phone calls became more regular, daily in fact - if I forgot to call, he'd call and harass me for 'sleeping in' or accuse me of 'saying up too late!' - neither had a bit of truth to it, we both got up about 6:30am, a habit of work.

Of course, being OUR GUEST for these Saturday 'road trips' - we paid it all, he was well worth the conversation & joking around. I'd find him 'jawing' with some 'young buck' - "Don't believe a damn thing that old coot tells ya! He's been lying longer than we've been alive!", Mel would flash a smile, "He's my chauffeur!" and resume his well worn tale... I'd heard pretty much all of those stories ... at least a dozen times. Sometimes interrupting, "Did he tell you the part about...?" or "Wait till he gets to the good part!" - and walk away, leaving the kid transfixed on some stupid rabbit trail of a story. Mel had managed to 'shoot off' the index finger on his right hand, his finger over the muzzle of a loaded 12 gauge shot gun, he bumped, it went off - and the whole finger, from the palm out - gone.

Naturally waving at someone ... had that certain risk of misinterpretation, missing that finger - he'd use the left hand instead. But... when it came to telling stories, that right hand was like a cop directing traffic, or Conductor waving at an Orchestra - waving and pointing, it alone got your attention - and he knew it... probably took advantage of the audience it too! Mel's wife, not a bit jealous, said it was good for him to get out, stretch his legs & meet new people. We were just glad to have him along, for the conversation, if nothing else.

Funny thing was... Mel and I came from the same industry, Communications, but a generation apart. His was from the 'copper era' - I was 'optical carrier' era. He felt like time & technology had passed him by, the good old days were well past him. One day, he mentioned his hatred of computers and fiber stuff - we got going on it, and when I reminded him, everything we do today, is built on the same technology he worked with decades earlier... He said he'd never understand it, till we discussed analogue to digital conversion, T-1 transport, TDM, all the signaling / handshaking, DWDM, wave frequencies/colors - "Hey, they did all that with what we had!" Yup... we just use fiber, instead of copper. We were fast friends after that, the generational had been bridged - he was proud to know ... this present generation was standing on his shoulders, his work wasn't cast aside, but was the groundwork, the foundation for us today. I could see the Pride in his eyes.

A few weeks ago, another gun show... but, we were having furnace trouble (no money), and he wasn't feeling good. Hadn't been but once, out to the reloading room, just wasn't feeling good. I talked to him last Saturday morning, he could barely speak, "Hey, buddy, you need to see a doctor..." Yeah, that's all I've been doing lately! in a long, slow labored breath. Barely 5 minutes, we hung up. We'd been through this before, I figured this was a bad one - but, he's 4 years younger than my FIL, who's pretty active, meh... he'd probably come around, smiling & telling tales, again. Sunday ... ring, no answer. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday morning calls, with no return call, rang unanswered. Mel's wife called later Wednesday, she'd just come home from the hospital, Mel went in Saturday night, passed away Wednesday morning.

Be seeing the empty shell of Mel this afternoon, to sort of say, Good bye... more for me, than for him. But, I'll see him again, a new body, full of energy - except we probably will be too busy talking about Jesus to waste time with the tall tales of our youth. And, with that right Index finger back, he ain't gonna have the same mesmerizing wave of the hand... everything's gonna be alright. Bye Mel, at least for now.

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What one shot fired can do 😥😥😥

SEYFERTH PARK MUSKEGON MI

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Nugent Sand Company began mining dunes off Lake Michigan shore in 1912. Property sold to Muskegon County 2017. See what they left after 100 yrs of mining!
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July 22, 2025
And now... for some WNBA highlights!

( they lost $40m last year - the money came from the men's side... oops! )

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Good afternoon brothers and sisters hope everyone has a great blessed day God Bless u all🙏✝️🙏✝️🇺🇸🎆🇺🇸❣️🇺🇸🤍🇺🇸💙🇺🇸🦅🇺🇸
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NAH, STAYING INSIDE

What brings the real feel to 100, humidity you can cut with a knife 😯

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I believe UKRAINE has learned a lesson. Show weakness , and invade. It works almost everywhere , almost all the time. Right Hunter?
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July 29, 2025
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How to create an article
Everyone with Admin access can do this

OK, so far, nobody has really used the power of LOCALS to Create news, Articles, Stories, whatever.  Everyone has been 'stuck' in CHAT mode, or Chit-Chat mode.  It's simple and powerful for publishing.  I can even have Videos & Pictures (or MEMEs) in the body of the Article.  Just creating a POST or REPLY to a POST, that's not an option.  All the non-admin users (look on Bongino for an example), get minimal rights (Regular Post & Reply) by comparison.  IMO, the system is for writing Articles, allowing subscribers to comment - really not intended for the way we've been using it. 

This screen shot, inserted into the article is not allowed in a Regular Post, but is part of the Article function.  

Wonder who let the poor guy know & if they fished a couple of those letters out of the dog crap, just to figure out who it was....?
I wanna know, who fished the letters out of that dog crap to figure out who was dropping them into the Dioggie Toilet!

Everyone knows how to do this part.  The schedule function is also easy, sometimes you've gotta click on the Calendar several times to get the date set.

Click on the Post Settings, some of you are already doing that part. 

Pick the day and date, then Schedule (red button)

That's easy.

The 1 individual who has the Admin Creator access, has a whole bunch of extra stuff they can do, even more once the subscribers hits 50.  One of those things is Podcasting for more than 30min, I believe it's 2 hours.  The next level is something like 3 hours of Podcasting.  Admin Creator also sets 'fees' for subscribers, Titles, has Edit, and all kinds of statistics avaliable - I don't want to do any of that stuff, I only wanted to write.

Have fun!

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Rare Apple Hunter
Preserving 1200 old varieties from the Appalachia

Tom Brown, a 79-year-old from Clemmons, North Carolina, has spent over 20 years of his retirement tracking down rare, nearly extinct apple varieties that once flourished across Appalachia. Driven by his passion for rediscovering these heirlooms, Brown has revived more than 1,200 unique apple types with whimsical names like Brushy Mountain Limbertwig, Mule Face, and Tucker’s Everbearing.

His journey began in 1998 after encountering heritage apples at a farmers’ market, inspiring him to search for “lost” apples that hadn’t been tasted in over a century. Stretching across the Appalachian region—from southern New York to northern Alabama—Brown scours old maps, orchard catalogs, and historical records, often driving hours and knocking on doors to find forgotten orchards or lone trees tucked in remote areas.

When he finds a lost variety, Brown grafts clippings onto trees in his own orchard, where he cultivates and sells them for just $15 to encourage others to create “mini preservation orchards.” Despite the challenge of aging trees and a dwindling population of local knowledge keepers, Brown remains determined, calling the work both fun and fulfilling.

“It’s a thrill to rediscover them,” he says. “I’m happy as a lark.” Brown’s mission not only preserves these apples but also honors the heritage of the region, where generations of families once prided themselves on cultivating unique varieties in their backyards.

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Sunday and I'm missing one whole hour!
Daylight Saving, musta ripped me off again!

There's talk about finally stopping daylight saving time, which didn't save anything, just messed with well meaning people and enhanced the bottom line for anyone selling 9volt batteries for smoke detectors!  POTUS Trump, says it's, 50-50 on keeping or abandoing it.  Can't remember changing the time on a clock growing up, maybe my parents sat up half the night, careful to change the clock at 1 or 2 am... while we kids were sleeping.  All I had was a wind up alarm clock with 2 bells on top - and - a wall clock, a Kat Clock... a beige colored Kat clock, with the tail hanging down, swinging back and forth.  You can't imagine, a pre-teen kid, climbing up on a chair or chest, or brother, pulling that thing off the wall, changing the time, and then... struggling to get it back on the nail on the wall. 

Kat Clock

It didn't purr like a kitty, just made this gutteral sound, like a mouse or sparrow was being digested and burped up in 2 second intervals... we somehow managed to sleep, probably swearing to hunt sparrows for Black Fat instead of letting him chase mice.  Every power outage, we'd end up either climing up the wall to reset that Kat clock, or ... if the hour was right, unplug it and try to get it timed just right, one kid at the plug, the other downstairds, watching the house clock, "Ready?  5-4-3-2-1 - plug it in!!!"  It wasn't a precise operation, but, close enough.

The wind up clock pretty much stopped, slowed down, sped up - what a useless piece of metal for us.  This sort of Brass & Sea Green thing sat there, across the room, the only thing we could see at night, because of it's luminious dial.

Living in the country, that was the only thing that made any noise, tick-tock tick-tock when you went to bed, as the night wore on, and the 'bladder alarm clock, insisted, you gotta get up NOW', the sound changed.  There you are, stumbling down the hallway, bleary eyed, knocking into everything, stubbing toes @ 3am, to the bathroom.  Finding your way back, that old Oak Floor in the middle of the night, barefoot - it felt as cold as a cement floor.  Crawling back into bed, after sweeping the cat off your pillow... getting back to sleep, impossible with that wind up torture device!  The bedroom seemed lit-up by it's glowing dial, and it no longer ticked & tocked, but had morphed into a Vincent Price's, 'Pit & the Pendulum' horror movie!  Terrifying to a 10 year old with an active imagination!  You're laying on your side, one eye checking up for a razor sharp, swinging Pendulum!  The windup clock was a necessary evil in the farmhouse, power went off and nobody knew what time it was - the school bus was showing up at 7:15am ... 2 hours for chores, then breakfast, and there's the bus!  "Click-clang click-clang"... better take another look, did I wake up in a Vincent Price dungeon???   Just about the time you're falling asleep from exhaustion, the air is filled with this now ear-splitting ringing - "Heck no, you're now under a WW2 air raid, in a London Subway Tunnel, and your brother is gasping & moaning from a gut wound, "Turn that darn thing off!  Which one of you idiots wound it up again?  It's Sunday, and we've changed the clocks last night!"  mumble-mumble, covers rustling, little feet hustling across the floor to the dresser as it rang - silence.

She's sleeping in, having been up with the owls, chatting with the girls... it's good to have a daughter or two home for a few days.  Gives her a good diversion from the Farm.  We call it PQFarm, because we hatch & raise Ducks.  Heritage breeds, keeping their lines alive, Silver Appleyard, Welsh Harlequin, Buff Opingtons.  Whenever we've gone to the hatcheries for day old chicks, they're bound to throw in a few of those, "Surprise!  We're Pekins!  Lousy egg layers, & we like to EAT a lot - forarging, what's that..?  Not for me!  Just feed me!  Aflack-aflack-aflack!"  One of two Drakes (males) is good, they're likely to do guard duty for the Ducks (hens) who are the egg layers we really wanted.  Big eggs, I mean twice the volume of a medium/large egg, a 2 Duck egg omlette is same as a 3 egg chicken omlette.  Pekins, when they do lay, are even bigger!

Yesterday, the farmer gave the girls the word, start laying ... or else!  2 eggs this morning!  Welsh harlequin size eggs.  It's cold enough, they're not fertile, so clean them up a bit, and into the fridge.  We'll wait till it warms up and everything is in full lay before we start setting eggs in the Incubators.  One of them we bought, it holds180 duck size eggs, the other I built, about 8x that size... but, we've never filled it that full.  Having the capacity is always good.  We've loaded up the small incubator many times, with a mix of Chicken, Turkey, Duck, Bob White Quail & Ring Neck Pheasants.  Those days are over, the kids were pretty involved with the bird operation & selling them at the farmer's market.  Farmer's markets were a 100% loss for me - I wanted to kids to learn how to SELL, it was for their education.  Sometimes, they came home smiling, sometimes a little bumed out, but it was always there to learn from, how to sell & barter.  They'd sell day olds, week olds and hardened off chicks - the latter didn't need any heat lamps... prices went up each week as our input costs rose.  Once the kids starting figuring out the initial pricing, adding in feed & heat lamp costs for older birds - I would just back away, and let them figure it out, occasionally getting a call, "What do you think about this price for ...".   They got better and better at Farmer's Markets, often selling everything they took.

The boys managed to turn the Turkey chicks into Pet's ... they'd follow them accross the yard, while free ranging, begging for easy treats!  One of the boys would be laughing, 20 or more Turkey chicks at his feet, pecking away at his shoes, or anything shiney, to the point of becoming annoying.  He'd sit on the glider of the Front Porch, half a dozen Turkey chicks surrounding him, asleep... "I can't move, dad! I'm covered in Raptors!"  What???  "Raptors have me pinned down!"  A peek out the window, 'Oh, his Turkeys are napping on his lap again.'  The next month, they'd all sell at the Farmer's Market, and there was little doubt, bringing joy to another buy.  "You guys like to hand-tame your birds, we really like that, about your family!" - so did we, a repeat customer.  I hope they managed to serve those birds up for Thanksgiving... Those broad-breasted birds could be well over 50-60 lbs if you'd let them go till Christmas!  36 lbs was our biggest we ever tried to squeeze into our oven, even 20 of us, couldn't finish that bugger off.

Thanks to the neighbor's dogs... we're down to 3 Pekins & 3 Welsh Harlequin Ducks (1 Drake & 2 Ducks, of each), unfortunately, they are near 4 years old, so..... we're going to try and get some new birds, just incase these guys are sterile.  And... I wanna get a tray or two of Bob White Quail eggs to set.  The Fillet Mignon of the Sky, like a Florida Pompono is to fish, Wagyu Beef to cows - so is Bob White Quail to birds.  Most of them will wind up as Owl & Hawk food as we release a bunch of them.  Quail are like little birdie buddies too!  One of the girls would hang around the incubator, opening the door, so they would see her face right after hatching, "Are you my mommie?" - and follow her around like baby kittens.  They'd grow up, loving people.  Hearing them calling in the morning & evenings, or suddenly flush in the tall grassy areas - man-o-man, that's real country living.  It's a reminder for me, God has/had a purpose in everything, even allergies.

The sun is high, warm sunny day.  Ducks are just peacefully floating around the front pond, frockling is over - I bet they'd like so fresh popped corn!  Ya know, as many days & hours spent sitting in a saddle, I can't ever remember dozing off.  At my height, 6'3", with that much weight leverage over a horse's center of balance, knowing shifting my weight around they'd stagger like a drunk - we could both fall over!  Often said to the Students in Riding lessons, "you gotta fall 1000 times before you're and expert" - I might have reached half of that if you rolled all those falls in, as a kid on a pony.  Time to go pop some corn...

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