clean hands for a thirsty planet
many sleepless nights have been spent thinking about a sink vanity for the off-grid wimberley project. our recent camping trip had us talking about the teardrop trailer I had once built from the axle up, and that reminded me of the camping hand pump fixture and potable water tanks used for those. I made some measurments and built the vanity at home using a few RV supply parts and scrap metal.
the granite counter top was salvaged (free via craigslist) from a home remodel over by mount bonnell. I cut it to size by turning my tile saw upside down and dragging it across the stone while using a water hose to keep the blade wet.
clean water for washing hands, brushing teeth etc. we still have to haul our own water in. the cabinet has a telescoping filler on the front that fills a 10 gallon tank inside the cabinet. I'll soon make a trip down to tile the bathroom and make it all pretty, but the mechanicals part of the project are getting knocked off the punch list. I'll also need to make an access panel for the battery and 12v fuse box to get that whole mess cleaned up as well.
it was only about 110 degree hot outside, we enjoyed a quick solar shower and made our way to meet some friends at thirsty planet brewing company.
had a few samples before the brewery tour.
I used to work at a microbrewery many years back, so I was already familiar with the equipment/process. what got me excited was to find a malaga bmw 2002tii tucked in their facility (left side of pic above), similar to one we owned a few years back.
back to the tasting room where we advanced to pint sized glasses and people started opening their wallets to buy shirts and pint glasses (by law they can't sell the beer, they have to give it away in the tasting room)
a few culinary high points from the past week:
I make ribs once a year. they get dry rubbed the day before. the sugar/salt/spice rub slightly cures the meat and it turns into a sort of pork candy. I smoke it for three hours, then braise for two hours it with a wine and herb chicken broth that makes the meat fall off the bone/fork tender.
we had a great meal at carillon. enjoyed happy hour at their bar before our reservation time. this drink is called "the bell" freshly sqeezed grapefruit juice, violet liquor, grapefruit pearls and dripping springs vodka for $2.56 cents! we also enjoyed the crispy pork belly and tenderloin tartare with truffle oil.