17MAR2024

Happy Sunday to all! We're freshly back from a fun camping trip out along the San Marcos River. It was our youngest little one's first time camping, and despite getting essentially no sleep whatsoever, we had a blast. Everyone's eager to get back out there and do it again. Sadly, we are doubtlessly days away from Central Texas being MUCH too hot to do anything outdoors, so we may have to wait until Fall for a repeat performance. All the more time for me to research ESSENTIAL gear for the next trip.

On to the good stuff!

• 🔥 Snow Peak Cooktop - Whilst camping this weekend, I got to put one of my favorite pieces of camping gear to good use! This Snow Peak cooktop packs down so small, but then unfolds, Transformer-style to be a massive and HOT cooktop for anything from full-size cast iron skillets to fancy, minimalist titanium cookware. I love this thing for camping, but it's also nice to have on hand as part of our disaster preparedness kit.
• 🔪 Knafs Lander 3 Kickstarter - Speaking of outdoors gear, I have a bit of problem with pocket knives... I have more than is reasonable for a normal human being. So, when the smart folks at Knafs said, "Does the world really need another pocket knife?" and then decided to make one anyway. It got my attention. I've seen their earlier knives and liked their simple, affordable take, but I really am digging the 3 iteration of their Lander pocket knife that they are currently Kickstarting. Beyond the great steel, and good looking form factor, I really like the idea of their open sourcing the design so you can tweak and 3D print your own handle scales, etc. I backed it and look forward to putting it to some outdoor use this summer.
• 🎒 Peter Attia's The Drive Podcast on Rucking - I had caught little highlights clips from this episode over the last few weeks, but finally managed this last week to hammer out the entire nearly three hour episode of Dr. Attia's interview with Jason McCarthy, founder and CEO of GoRuck. I've been rucking off and on for a little over 10 years at this point, and consistently find it to be one of the best, low impact workouts I can do for my overall cardio and strength health. This fascinating interview covers everything from the history of the company to the health benefits and best practices for rucking. Worth a listen-- bonus points if you throw some books or rocks in a backpack and go for a long walk while you listen.
• 🍕 Origins of Cowabunga - Mental Floss had a great little history on the origins of the term "Cowabunga" in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles this week. I won't spoil it, but there's a ridiculous video clip of its original usage. 🤯
• 🔫 Manhunt - Somehow, this new miniseries completely slipped past my radar but has jumped to the top of my must see list. The series is based on a non-fiction book of the same name that recounts in excruciating detail the history of the 12 day manhunt for John Wilkes Boothe after he assassinated Abraham Lincoln. Beyond the fascinating story, it's got a killer cast. I'm eager to check it out.

That's it for this week– be well, everyone!