OT: Friday POSBANG (MGoBloggers In Real Life edition)
Happy Posbangin' Friday, everyone! Time to do our civic duty (don't worry, it's nothing like jury duty) and upvote each poster to his/her full five. What better way to celebrate the weekend? This weekend's task for me is MacGuyvering some backpacking gear and making a few last-minute preparations for a hike.
Topics!
- What are your weekend plans?
- Any MGoBackpackers out there?
- Have you ever met an MGoBlogger in real life, or found out someone you know is an MGoBlogger?
- Favorite grilled cheese variants?
I've actually only ever met two MGoBloggers, one who posts occasionally on the board, one who doesn't. This is rather surprising, given my residence in the Mitten State. Have you ever run into someone, guiltily admitted your obsession with MGoBlog, and discovered they were a fellow MGoAddict?
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:35 AM ^
1. I'm going to a Nike Coach of the Year Clinic.
2. No.
3. I know some MGoBloggers in real life, but I knew them prior to MGoBlog.
4. Grilled cheese with turkey.
February 22nd, 2013 at 3:54 PM ^
Are you the recipient of said award?
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:59 PM ^
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:35 AM ^
with mozzarella, sauteed mushrooms and tomotaoes, on buttered and toasted bread, with some sauce made of mayo/ketchup/italian seasonings/a touch of vinegar.
February 22nd, 2013 at 9:40 AM ^
whoa whoa whoa... i think you just gormet'ed the shit out of a grilled cheese
i need to see this frankenstein
February 22nd, 2013 at 10:50 AM ^
they have a version of it at Ashley's (sans the sauce) although I think the bread Ashley's uses is too hard/thick. You want to go with something large, that can handle the toppings, but soft. I go with challa. Also, you have to use multiple cheeses. The mozarella gives it the stringy look but you need some sharp cheddar and maybe a bit of gouda to increase the taste experience.
Also, the sauce is killer. Something like 4 tbsp of mayo, 2 or 3 tbsp of ketchup, 1 tsp of italian seasoning, and 1 tbsp of white vinegar. Adjust for taste/texture (it can get soupy if you use too much vinegar).
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:38 AM ^
Wild game dinner tonight (with an open bar)
Red Wings game then hitting up the Old Shillelagh afterwards on Saturday
I own a backpack
And I have never met an MGoBlogger. Try to get my friends involved so I can stop feeling embarrassed for my obsession with this website, but to no avail so far.
And the best thing you can do to a grilled cheese, is dip it in tomato soup. No need to add anything to the actual sandwich.
February 22nd, 2013 at 10:16 AM ^
wild game dinner with an open bar sounds like a blast. Bacon-wrapped everything!
My wife does a killer grilled cheese - shaved sopprassata or prosciutto, gouda, and a little dijon on 12 grain bread.
February 22nd, 2013 at 10:30 AM ^
Also accepting: cousin, and depending on your age, daughter or granddaughter.
Edit: Also, mother.
February 22nd, 2013 at 10:44 AM ^
I've got an opening for 2nd cousin once-removed.
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:38 AM ^
Posbang away!
1. I will be mowing the lawn, watching various sporting events, studying Chemistry, practicing the violin, and spending too many hours on World of Warcraft and MW2.
2. Hmm, no I'm not a MGoBackpacker. Although I've always wanted to go to a foreign country with nothing but a backpack and make my way to various locations. Backpacking across Europe or Africa is on my bucket list.
3. Not that I know of. I do have suspicions though...
4. My own variation: American, cheddar, and mozzarella on ciabatta with lots of bacon.
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:55 AM ^
Public transportation is great in Europe, but you're gonna blow a lot of money there. It's fun, but unless you have some serious cash saved up, you'll have to take a short trip. Unless you want to make all your reservations for hostels and whatnot three months in advance, but really, the point of a backpack trip is it doesn't have to be planned or scripted (Couchsurfing is of course another option).
If you speak Spanish, South America is wonderful. There's "collectivos" everywhere (15-passenger vans that haul people from place to place), and even the premium long-distance busses are really cheap. Excluding airfare, you can travel around and see things there for maybe $500 per month. Peru/Bolivia/Ecuador/Colombia will be cheaper, while Argentina and Chile will be more expensive. Likewise with Brazil, but you need to know Portuguese for that.
February 22nd, 2013 at 9:14 AM ^
Very good to know, thank you!
(And this is why I love MGoBlog)
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:41 AM ^
Favorite grilled cheese variants?
I live in Korea. What is cheese?
February 22nd, 2013 at 10:00 AM ^
Which one? I assume mgoblog is one of the two websites allowed by Kim Jong Un.
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:41 AM ^
Where are you planning on going backpacking this time of year? Are you using snowshoes? I always have a hard time finding interesting places to backpack in the lower peninsula (besides the Manitee Islands) in the summer but the winter I wouldn't know where to begin to look.
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:46 AM ^
No, I'm headed out of state to start the AT in Georgia (week from yesterday I'll be on the trail!). Although, the weather in Michigan is probably about the same as it'll be in the Smokies. It'll be a lot windier and foggier there, though.
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:58 AM ^
If you see a guy fly fishing and a girlfriend yelling at him, "Can we hike already?!" It's probably me.
February 22nd, 2013 at 9:00 AM ^
That's awesome, man! Are you doing the entire jaunt? Jealous!
February 22nd, 2013 at 9:14 AM ^
Only if I hike really fast. I have to get off the trail in mid-july for work reasons, so I'm getting as far as I can between now and then (hence, the February start). Will probably make it to Graylock-ish.
Gobgoblue: if all the tourists to the smokies think I'm crazy, it's all your fault :)
February 22nd, 2013 at 9:20 AM ^
So if you don't know how far you are going to be able to go how could you coordinate mailing your care packages to yourself beforehand or are you not going to do that?
February 22nd, 2013 at 9:24 AM ^
Well, I have a very wonderful mother who is very sad to see me move out of state and would love nothing more than to shower me with love, affection, and packages. So I'm kind of playing it by ear; I'll call her a couple weeks in advance and tell her if I want a maildrop somewhere, or if I'm just planning to buy food in town. I've heard from a thru-hiker friend that it's a really BAD IDEA to plan out now what you're going to eat in New York; you'll probably hate the thing you bought 100 of by time you get there. Either skip maildrops for the most part, or have people assemble them for you while you're on the trail.
February 22nd, 2013 at 12:04 PM ^
Without any political incentive, are you bringing any firearms for protection? My other half is compulsively worrying about defense so it has probably seeped into my subconcious. Thus, the root of this question.
February 22nd, 2013 at 2:02 PM ^
Heck no. Only a small minority of people who shoot a bear in self-defense (who aren't trained hunters and whatnot) actually end up stopping the thing. Seriously. studies have shown that bear spray (which I won't carry, because eastern black bears are very timid) is way more effective in stopping a bear than a firearm is.
But like I said, most people don't even see a bear on the trail, much less have a confrontation with one. If there were grizzlies in the area, I'd bring bear spray. But the odds are so microscopic of having a confrontation with a black bear that it's not worth it.
February 22nd, 2013 at 7:21 PM ^
February 22nd, 2013 at 10:47 PM ^
but I kind of disagree. Granted, I'm familiar with a wide range of weaponry. Pepper spray can be effective, but at close range and if the shit really hit the fan (which I agree is a remote possibility), I'd really prefer to have a sidearm. Or both. Knowing I'm the possessor of deadly force would be reassurance if things went awry.
Further, If I were hiking the AT, knowing the abundance of meth labs and weird people i this world, I'd doubly want a sidearm. Hiking any portion of the AT is a big undertaking - you're alone or in a small vulnerable group, in a wafer-thin tent at night in a remote campsite, and because you're dog-ass tired maybe you don't practice the best food security at night, or some locals think it's a great idea to mess with hikers. Those are both real possibilities. A young woman was killed and EATEN by a black bear while trout fishing not far from the AT a few years ago.
Just a different perspective. Whatever the case, safe travels and have a large time.
February 23rd, 2013 at 12:20 AM ^
February 23rd, 2013 at 3:46 AM ^
Well I can certainly see wanting a firearm for the non-ursine predators walking around the woods. But as far as bears go, if you're close enough range to need to shoot them, you're close enough range to use pepper spray effectively. You won't read a single piece of bear literature in any place that denies the fact that pepper spray is more effective in preventing injury to yourself. Peace of mind is quite another thing, of course.
February 22nd, 2013 at 12:50 PM ^
Just a section of it though, for spring break, heading out with 5 other UofM students so it'll be a blast. Plan to do about 53 miles of the Appalachian trail and the Bartram trail in Nantahala National Forest. Wish we could have done the Smokies, one of my favorite places in the world, but planning for basically February weather there is impossible when you could wake up in 60 degree weather and go to sleep in a blizzard. If our break was a little later it'd be that much better.
Best of luck to you though! It's always been a dream of mine to try and hike the whole AT one day, one that probably won't happen, oh well.
February 22nd, 2013 at 2:06 PM ^
Spring break trips to the smokies=bad news (hypothermia, postholing through 4 foot drifts). Probably a good choice. So good though that you get to hit the trail anyway!
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:42 AM ^
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:48 AM ^
MacGuyvering is basically the art of constructing useful stuff out of household materials. I made an alcohol stove out of beer cans, and now I'm working on a pot stand and windscreen to complete the ensemble. It's significantly lighter and cheaper than commercial gear, and you can make a new one on the trail using a knife if it gets busted for whatever reason.
What's your favorite place to hike?
February 22nd, 2013 at 9:27 AM ^
February 22nd, 2013 at 2:46 PM ^
I went backpacking there with my brother. The last day we were there we camped right at the end. I woke up in the morning and went to the overlook area and the lake had completely clouded over leaving only the morning sun reflecting off of the fog.
February 23rd, 2013 at 11:10 AM ^
about the Porcupine Mountains for backpacking. Well worth the long trip up to the Western UP, the scenery is fantastic thru all sorts of terrain. I've been there 3 times for the hike and have been on the majority of the trails there, great memories!
I've also made the trip twice in the winter for skiing, the view overlooking Lake Superior is great and the powder (lots of it) fantastic!
February 22nd, 2013 at 10:44 AM ^
I worked at a sign shop at the time, and used them for the materials to make the stand and windscreen. If you've got a Signs By Tomorrow or something similar nearby, you can probably get a 6x18 length of aluminum for the windscreen and a cheap wire stand (usually used for corrogated plastic yard signs) that you can bend into a pot stand for a couple bucks.
If you're looking for another handy, relativly cheap DIY backpacking project, I suggest the walking stick stool:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Multi-Function-Walking-Stick-Converts-into-a-Cha/
It doesn't make the sturdiest walking stick in the world, but it's super worth it to have a comfortable stool to sit on at the end of the day. And since you'd probably be carrying walking stick anyway, it doesn't really add any weight.
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:49 AM ^
I believe it means he has duct tape and a swiss army knife...and Murdoc will show up at some point.
February 22nd, 2013 at 9:04 AM ^
but if you're looking for cheap, authentic hiking/camping gear, I'd suggest you check out sierratradingpost.com
They have a crazy amount of deals and sales of legitimate gear. I got a pair of hiking boots with Gore-tex waterproof (mid) for 40 dollars. I got them 4 years ago and they don't even look used.
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:44 AM ^
February 22nd, 2013 at 9:55 AM ^
10 am, still in my jammies, sipping coffee and juice, the wife just made pancakes (she's workign from home too), working on a couple proposals, and enjoying my birthday.
Couldn't be finer.
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:45 AM ^
- Studying for CPA Exam and shopping for a new golf driver
- No
- I was in Winston-Salem for work a year or two ago and went to the hotel bar to catch a Michigan-Wisconsin basketball game. I thought I would have to request the game be turned on, but to my surpise there was a fellow U-M fan already in the bar watching the game. He also happened to be an MGoBlogger.
- Pepper jack cheese with a little Franks Red Hot on Texas toast
February 22nd, 2013 at 9:14 AM ^
February 22nd, 2013 at 10:49 AM ^
I'm taking Audit on April 1st. I think the order for now is AUD, BEC, REG, and FAR.
February 22nd, 2013 at 11:20 AM ^
February 22nd, 2013 at 12:34 PM ^
You as well. I hope you pass.
February 22nd, 2013 at 10:31 AM ^
Best of luck
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:48 AM ^
I will be hanging out with my 10 week old son and my wife
Not much of a backpacker any longer
I have never met an MgoBlogger in real life, but I live in Philly...Not saying there are no Mgo's in Philly, but I don't expect to meet any
Grilled cheese: pepperjack cheese on multigrain bread and dipped in a tomato soup
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:49 AM ^
Weekend plans: Cheer Michigan to victory over the Illini. Otherwise chillax.
Not a backpacker but like the concept.
I have met a few MGoBloggers in real life. It can be a somewhat awkward experience.
Favorite grilled cheese variant: ham, cheddar, Gulden's on wheat.
February 22nd, 2013 at 8:50 AM ^
1) My weekend plans, aside from Michigan hoops on Sunday, comprise mainly of shopping for my wife's birthday present (for her birthday is Monday), and maybe finally installing the wireless printing equipment in my house. There will be a generous smattering of MGoBlog as well.
2) I have backpacked a couple times, but not on a particularly long adventure (overnight trips), so it likely doesn't count in the true spirit of backpacking.
3) I actually went to the last HTTV release party, so I met quite a few. I met another one last Friday at work as they came to grab my "Return To Crisler" tickets since I could not attend.
4) One of my personal favorites is a grilled swiss with pastrami and sliced red onion. Someone gave me the recipe and it is awesome indeed.