About Me...
(My dad, Donald, on the left and Charlis-dog getting a treat from me, Darrin, back in October, 2005. As of July, 2012, I'm the last one breathing. I miss them both terribly. They were most dear to my heart.)
I was born and raised in Baltimore, MD, then spent some time in college studying Electrical Engineering Technology in Phoenix, AZ. I eventually wound up in Wyoming in 1989. I currently manage our family's ranch property and operate RUF, Inc. Renaissance Universal Fabrication, Incorporated started out with me unofficially building and repairing all sorts of machinery, then evolved into a corporation specializing in custom mobile chassis and enclosures for extreme use. I began building campers on Mercedes-Benz Unimogs, then switched to custom 4WD Mitsubishi trucks.
I've backed off from vehicle fabrication after EPA mandated low sulfur diesel in USA. My clients were all looking for round-the-world capable 4x4 diesel campers, and the new rules took all the fun out of it. I still consult on campers and alternative-energy, and also sell German windows, Dutch toilets, and other specialized marine and RV supplies.
I am here full-time, for all three months of summer and nine months of winter! (Spring and fall are short, but cherished, and realistically, winter days can occasionally get into the 50s and 60s so it's not that bad.) There's never really a good time to leave the ranch, but I do manage to get away. When actively ranching, we'd start calving in February, farm in the Spring, put up hay and repair fence in the Summer, gather up and sell the livestock in the Fall, then start to feed our hay to the cows during the Winter months as calving rolled around again. Dad passed away in October, 2007, and in 2009 we sold our cattle and leased our pasture and meadows to a couple other local ranchers.
I'm constantly thinking of the next adventure, and dreaming of far-away places with water and greenery! I once thought I'd like to circumnavigate the globe, sailing on a blue water catamaran. Unfortunately, I haven't sailed since I was in my teens in Maryland and I get horribly sea-sick, so I don't think this is in the cards. A few years ago, I started a new website, Kalzbagon, to blog about travel and stuff. You know, Kalzbagon, like "Cows Be Gone". It's what I would have named my sailboat!
I've been married twice - once for 12 years to a ranch-girl named Andie, from Wyoming. My second wife of nearly 6 years, Anna, was from Holland. They say the third time's the charm. At the moment, I'm content to just love my two new rescue dogs, Elsa-Mae and Minna-Muis.