Do You Have Choices? Is It All Destiny?

 Or is it just that danged Murphy?

While I might be considered a "Believer"... I'm not one who believes in Fate... or some Organized, preordained Plan that controls my trail. I mean... if what I'm gonna do and where I'm gonna go was already written down somewhere then why, If I've no control, am I strugglin' so hard to sort it out? In fact, if those decisions were already made, why even get out of bed of a morning? Let the 'stand in' speak my "part".

Nope. I believe in Free Choice. Either I have it... or I don't. Now... of course that is tempered a lil' bit by that danged lil' Irish prankster... but then I do have the option to rope his beer swillin' behind and brand him up a bit... maybe even notch an ear or two!

Along the same lines, I don't much believe in the fatefull; "It wasn't meant to be" ~ or ~ "When your number is up your number is up" kind of thinking either. I just don't... I won't believe that the world around us makes our choices for us. Obstacles and difficulties by the bus load are thrown up sure... but... the choices are ours.

Fact is... there's been a time or four that it sure appeared that my Number Was Up. Only, bein' the stubborn buster I am... I refused to accept that. I Chose different.

My thinking is... Everything a body needs was put down here for us to use. If we waste it, that's our choice and the consequences are ours. If we husband what was put together for our use, and manage it wisely, it's Shining Times., and again, by our choices.

Now... THAT, managing Wisely, is something easier said than done ain't it? Since Wisely comes out of wisdom... and Wisdom comes from scars... Even doing it Right sorta means doing it painfully wrong a time or three!

But, in the end I think success or failure, is mostly dependent on how much we want something, and the choices we make in pursuit of Jack Palances "One Thing".  It's also colored by how much of the "Rest" (our secondary ambitions) we're willing to sacrifice to overcome the obstacles we find along the way; To find, achieve and hold on to That One Thing.

Remember that? Jack's Line in the City Slickers film?

Jack asks Billy Crystal; "Do you know what the secret to life is?"

    Billy answers; "No, what?"

    Palance answers: "One thing, just one thing. You stick to that and everything else don't mean sh*#."

    Crystal looks puzzled and asks, "That's great, but what's the one thing?"

    "That's what you've got to figure out."

That's the bottom line of most ever'thing I write about and that; You stick to that One Thing... and everything else don't mean sh*#!!

The inmates of the Goin' RV Boondocking Fifth Wheel and Cowboy Biker Publishing Empire are approaching one of those 'Choices of Wisdom' forks in the road I'm thinking.

How many times have I knocked the dust off my soap box on a tirade 'bout "Avoiding the slithering entrapment of credit?" Or... how it'd be best to swear off the stuff and dig your way out of it, assuming that, like pretty much ever'body else in this soh-sigh-uh-tee, you'd taken a taste... and then like the sailor on his first shore leave... got staggering, face-in-the-mud plastered on the hooch! 

Again, easier said than done. When you're on the shady side of the mountain and can see the good years NOT stretching Out of Sight in Front of You any longer... and that Brick Wall of Mortality comin' at you in a rushin' hurry... the patience required to exercise the alternative to credit kind of loses it's shine... don't it? :)

Choices... Always choices and judgements.

Yeah, well... I guess Avoid and Best are the operative words here, since in this world the only available choices are often the two that have you deciding twixt the Devil and his Demon Sidekick. Unless you're willing to sit and wait, hoping that maybe if you hold your ears right, the clouds will part, the sun will come out, and suddenly everything will be all sweetness and light.

OK... That's a nice thought... But you're not sitting there holding your breath right? and... just in case you haven't noticed... I'm not real long on patience any more. There was a time, as others have said, that I had "the patience of an oyster"... Now? Not so much.

Our rig was supposed to be a lil' different than it is... a little stronger, a lil' better shape... But... the choices I had, the obstacles presented, and the pursuit of That One Thing... has us where we sit. The most important was protected but with a cost to the rest.

... and like Jack promised; all that "everything else?" ... "don't mean sh*#!" ;)

Now, I might get philosophical 'bout a lot of things but it don't mean I tee total ignore reality and everything else. Philosophy is the controls of the boat. The Rudder. It helps me keep things in perspective.

The point is... though I'd like to never use credit again, I'd like to never work for "The Man" again, I'd like to be as Free as the Beaver and the Wolf; The Reality of my Freedom is tempered as is that of the Beaver.

Sure he's Free and can live where ever he chooses... but he's gotta keep a wary eye for the Wolf too! If he wants to avoid being just another Freely Hunted meal on the Wolf's list of Gourmet Wildlife Feasts.

I can see the writing on the wall, some many miles down the road. We've used this Old rig hard, and it has miles left in it for sure... But how many? Is it wiser to wait until we're parked in a high mountain camp north of the back side of beyond... when it craps out? or... get out in front of it... and do something about it before we're backed into a corner where time and situation whittles our options to those that are fewer and less tasty. But, doing "something" means the use of money I don't have... again... the choices and the balancing of priorities.

So... I'm bein' a lil' ambiguous here... with intent. We have choices to make, and realities to accept, and eventually, we'll make 'em and accept 'em. Bein' fortunate to be blessed with a good tolerance for risk and a Fairly clear vision of what's most important to me, I take what comes and deal with it, one way or the other. I'll fly high or I'll crash hard...  Without a whole lot of grey in between. It's how it has always been for me, and how it will always be.

If I crash and burn? While it can be wearisome...it holds few fears. Been there ~ Done that! :) I'll stand back up...lift up My right foot... stick it out in front of me... and Start over... again. Either way, it'll be a hell of a ride! :)

You have choices to make as well. The only advice I can offer is; One thing, just one thing. You stick to that and everything else don't mean sh*#."

 "That's what you've got to figure out."  ... In the mean time, I'll be...

Chasing My One Thing... Always
Brian

I'm a Baaaaad Cowboy.... Sometimes

On this Memorial Day Holiday of 2012, and in remembrance of the fallen, who have given us so much, I find it appropriate to offer a general apology. Though, I apologize for any discomfort the transgressions of which I will speak have caused; I must honestly say, I can not be ashamed for them. Yet I do remain, often, a bad Cowboy.

Though it was from a training accident, I am a disabled Vet. I don't say that for sympathy. I don't want it, and won't accept it. I say it only as background, hoping it might offer help in understanding.

I've read where; "There are moments in your life that define you, that speak of who you are."

Those moments, in my life, have made me Intensely Passionate about Freedom and Liberty. I have seen the human race at its absolute, most depraved, worst... and paradoxically, at that same moment, its absolute and glorious finest.

In my "sermons" I have generally been careful to say, clearly, that each and every person must make their own choices in this life. That whatever those choices are, they are theirs to make... without judgement or criticism. Defense of that Right is what I served for.

At the same time, it is my desire to be a catalyst... an agent that prods and provokes people to stretch and reach beyond their "comfort zone" and strive for the true glory that is Freedom. It is my belief that the citizens of this society are conditioned, trained and propagandized by the system to be fearful of risk. To recoil from and reject risk at almost any cost. It is through this conditioning and the promise of future security in exchange for ever more of your liberty that the system grows its power and control; which is the one and only goal of any government.

It is a facet of my personal philosophy, for My Self that; An intense and all consuming focus on current and future security that seems to occupy and enmesh the majority of people's thoughts and efforts, is a cancer that consumes my todays if I allow it.

To sacrifice Necessary Liberty in the name of a fleeting and ephemeral Security is something I simply can not do. It is a personality trait that I know, many see as a flaw... but... it is my flaw.

It is also my opinion that the greatest part of any "security" is mostly fleeting and imaginary, and largely based on small pieces of paper that can be devalued without warning. Or consumed by the cancer of inflation over which there is no defense; and which is largely controlled by those selling the imaginary security in the first place. "Out of chaos comes control."

But... This is only My Opinion, which I live by and with... within the fevered confines of my own brain. 

In my desire to promote the joy that is Freedom and Liberty I on occasion, have found that I can become excessively assertive and aggressive in pursuit of that dream. The dream of dying knowing that something I did in my life led some few others to Freedom.

The Love I have for Liberty; Born of a sure and certain knowledge of the inherent costs and risks that make it so Precious; can sometimes blind a man to the reality that others might not Value it to the same degree, as is their Right.

It is also my belief that most have never known true Freedom, concealed under their blankets of Imagined security. It is my belief, Spoken freely. If you disagree, that is your Right. The Right that I and others served to Protect and Defend.

I have been advised and I believe it is true that I am endowed with a higher tolerance for risk than that carried by many if not most others. I do not fear failure or death. I have failed many times. I expect to know a few more.

What I fear is Life without Freedom.

I believe it is right to be so. However; It is not right to attempt to impose my belief on anyone or bully them into adherence to it; no matter how correct I might believe myself to be.

The definition of Liberty and Freedom dictates that anyone, striving to support and promote it must respect the values and choices of all others, within their own lives, as they demand such respect for their own. On occasion, my passion for Freedom has led me to say things in ways which I understand can be misread as denigrating those opinions of others. That has never and will never be my wish or intention. It is simply the consequence of an Overzealous lust for Freedom. For this I apologize.

I have put my life on the line in defense of the Freedom of which I speak. I would never, knowingly, betray that Treasure. My Freedom means more to me than Life.

So... If my words in Defense of Liberty have ever Offended or seemed excessively Aggressive; I apologize. I hope that you will understand that while I can not guarantee they will not be repeated, and though my Passions may lead me to speak too loudly at times... I hope only that you will understand my true motive, and tolerate my occasional overzealous expression.

This old soldier apologizes for any discomfort his passions may produce and asks for your forgiveness for the vice with which he is afflicted; His Passionate, all consuming, and sometimes overbearing, Love of Freedom. 

Brian

Is THIS... All There IS?

Mark, Boonie, Randy an' a few others have been working over the "Meaning" of RV Boondocking... and the Wandrin' Life... Like a lot of folks, it seems to me, they've been looking for what's "Missing"...

... and seeking ways of re-Shaping the life... to fit some imaginary blueprint. Pretty much Human Nature I'd guess. Kind of like the human equivalent of Beaver's. Cut here... fill there...poke this bit in over yonder... and Wa'La! A New World.

Only problem with that is... The More things change... the more they stay the same... as soon as you go to trying to "Re-invent" soh-sigh-uh-tee ... you wake up and you're driving an Edsel... same old same old with a new hood ornament... Put Lipstick on a pig, and ya still got a pig. ;)

~ ~ ~
I would get up in the morning...drivin' from my bed by the caustic scream of a Chinese made alarm clock. Climb on the bike at oh dark thirty and hit the road in a 15 degree sunrise.

Just a few feet up the road there was a sign "55mph"... on the side road just past it was another sign; "STOP".

In the center of the road are paint stripes... No passing... the other side can pass... my side can pass...

In the town I have to stop at the command of a light... I go with the permission of a light... I pass a man... several men... in cars with lights, and words painted on them who give commands in bullying posture and tone...

I walk down the street past signs, into stores... everywhere... No dogs, No running, No skateboards, No fishing, No Cell Phones, No Weapons, No Smoking, No Turns, No Parking, No No No No No...

I step into the place I work; "Have this done by 9:30. When you're finished come find me. I'll give you MORE work."

At the end of the day... Drained of the energy of life I drag myself back out to the bike... climb on... cinch down the helmet... Twist the throttle and roar away from that... but toward another town... People pushing, honking, cutting me off... running me off the road... Stealing the property from my home, stealing the very vehicle on which I sit... Trying to use weapons thinking they'll steal from me directly!

I turn on a radio or a boob tube... or pick up a newspaper or a magazine... or read the propaganda signs littering every intersection, and half the roadside between... and I have bureaucrats promising an easy life... if I surrender a bit more of that one thing that is the ONLY thing On This Earth... that is of ANY Value...

Everywhere... in this supposedly "Evolved" soh-sigh-uh-Tee... at EVERY turn... is someone with a Plan... someone with an Agenda... someone grabbing on to what ain't his with the intent of turning it to His/Her benefit... with... or... without... the co-operation of the true Owner of "That what ain't his". More often than not in this civilized soh-sigh-uh-tee... any co-operation that is gained is only the result of coercion, deceit and the fatigue of the beaten down... too tired to resist the unending abuse any more...

Now... from that dark, choking, reeking, cess pool of misdirected human endeavor... My wheels, 10 on the rig or the Two on the Scooter! roll me out into the bright sunshine... and put me on a road that leads to...

*Freedom Road*

 Wanders in... By God it Revels in...

FREEEEEEEDOMMMMMMM!

It's talked about how some folks roll for a few months... or a few years... and then stand there one day, hands in their pockets... looking up and down the beach...

Looking North they say; "Been that way." Looking south they say; "Been that way... I'm bored. Is THIS all there is? I thought there'd be More."

Huh? Not Really?!!!

What that is... is the vestiges... the yet unhealed scars of a grasping, commanding, demanding, cannibalistic, parasitizing human so-sigh-uh-tee.

From the time folks discard their diapers, they stand on their own two feet and begin taking the orders and commands of ALL those around them... to sacrifice their lives for the GREATER ??? good...to be beaten down if they stray from the commanded, expected route.

They grow up learning that until you are told what to do... you Don't Know... you aren't smart enough, talented enough, wealthy enough... and besides that... you don't have the RIGHT to live your own life. Your life belongs to US! It is for the Greater??? good! and to say otherwise means you are a sociopath best locked up and discarded if we can not rehabilitate you!

The end result? When, by some great and joyous combination of events they achieve that True Glory of FREEDOM!... they are fully un-equipped to do anything with it. Because... they've been Inculcated with the BullS&%T... for their entire lives that they must have "Guidance" to do ANYTHING!

ARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

Just what have you seen the Guiders do that has ever amounted to anything worth while?

The only Guidance you will EVER need is right between your ears... and equal amounts reside in your Heart and in your SOUL.

*NEVER... Fear to Climb the Mountain... Fear the Valley that Never Strives*

ALL you need to do... is open up those receptacles and dip into the precious treasure you've been carrying around, Unknown... Your Entire Life! When you hear the whispers of that little demon that's been covertly planted in your head by so-sigh-uh-tee, telling you; See? They lied! It's all for nothing...

... take a hammer... and bludgeon that carnivorous little maggot! It has NEVER been for Nothing... You Now, for the First Time in Your LIFE... Have FREEDOM! What you do with it... For the FIRST TIME IN YOUR LIFE... is tee totally up to you. The only thing you have left to conquer... is FEAR.

OK... The nut of this windy sermon is this...

If you find yourself on a beach... and think you've only got left or right, and you've been there before... Close your eyes... take a deep slow breath... and look inside your own soul.

What... if you could snap your fingers and make it be... Would you be doing?

Think not of the cost in dollars... nor the cost in sweat... nor the risk... nor any other obstructing tool so-sigh-uh-tee has conditioned you to chain your self to IT with...

Think ONLY of your Joy. What would YOU BE DOING... if all the interferences of de-volving so-sigh-uh-tee were removed.

Now... THAT... is your Objective. The ONLY thing that makes any sense to pursue. Finding the way to get from where you are... to WHAT YOU WOULD BE DOING... is what should occupy your day and consume your energies. (In fact it's a strange defiance of physics; that consuming that energy in the pursuit of your passion actually compounds your energy!)

*A Beach worth Walking Again :) *

If... you find yourself "Traveling" with others... fine... but... that is only socializing... and carries the heavy danger of rapidly falling back into so-sigh-uh-tee... Socializing is good... I don't promote hermitages... But... allowing ANYONE to have power, or exercise "influence" over the choices and options of your life is like saying that Some Cancer is Good.

As always... my Opinions are Free... So you get what you pay for! ;)
Brian

Just When You Think You've Got It Nailed...

You find out that though you'd rather be the hammer... you are in deed the nail!

I woke up Saturday Morning, put the coffee pot to doin' it's thing on that nice quiet solar power we've got stocked up in the batteries... sat down at the table and started whittlin' on the book...

In a lil' bit... sittin' there sippin joe and stringin' words I looked up and didn't really care for what I was seein' along the creek...

If you've been 'round this rig for any length of time ya'll know that modified, solidified, and de-heatified water... fallin' out of the sky, quit bein' anything I found attractive some lil' while ago!

So... when, in just a lil' bit that stuff started acting like a genuine spring storm... I started gettin' a bit antsy...

*Unexpected Weather Modifications*

Camped up at 10,000 feet stimulated memories of last year. I think it was about ten days later, and nigh on to 2000 feet lower that we woke up on Memorial Day with near to a foot of snow on the roof!

Not having any commo to know what the storm was or what we might could expect...

And, What with having to be a couple of hundred miles east in a few days... I opted to use that greater part of valor that I'm also pretty shy of... Discretion! ... we packed up early and DiDi'd for the lowlands! :)

We figured to roll east, part way to the front range and set a lower camp for the few days we had left before we had to descend into the populated urban dungeon.

Turns out... other things were workin'. The good gal that helps keep us on the road by takin' good care of our lil' store back in Fort Collins, called while we were rolling after lunch and notified us that she had a Family Emergency and needed to Fly out ASAP... If we'd just stayed put to weather the storm... she'd not have been able to let us know and she'd have been in a bit of a tight.

It really was a no brainer. Without her, we'd not be able to do what we do. So... she takes care of us... and we'll darn sure do what we can for her!

Any hoo... We made to head east the rest of the way to Fort Collins... a few days early. I knew I wasn't gonna run the whole way in one day... I just don't run that far at one time any more... Unless maybe I'm on two wheels! :)

Passed a few NF roads... but with the weather wet and those roads not well known to me, and not feeling like karma was smiling I juuuuust didn't feel like testing my mettle and ability to back a rig a mile or three in the mud if the road proved a poor choice... so... we kept lookin' for a night camp.

Long about 4:30 in the p.m. we'd just crossed Wilkerson Pass, we were in pretty country at 'bout 9,500 feet... and along came a Forest Service Visitor Center.

Of course, it wasn't open yet... but the gate was! :) and guess where I found a spot to hang my hat for the night? Sat there till near dark, waitin' for the sheriff or maybe a Forest Ranger to come tell us it wasn't safe for a rig to spend the night in an empty parking lot ;) and it would be better for everyone concerned and soh-sigh-uh-tee in general if we took off pushin' 20,000 lbs down the road Sleepy Driving... but neither Deputy or Ranger showed ;)

Darn! Danged Ol' Bureaurats! I had a whole speech practiced out 'bout How I'd a PAID at one of the self service pay stations... to spend the night in a Forest Service Campground... IF... they didn't have 'em all LOCKED UP! ;)  and I never got to use it! :(

So... I put on my cowboy jammies... and went to bed!

I'm not sure how many nights in a row that is now that our camp rent has been Zero... but... we've not paid a penny since we left Zion... and that don't hurt the budget at all... especially considerin' it had run at something like zero for a long time prior to Zion!

*Sunrise with I think Pikes Peak in the Distance*

It doesn't hurt to have nice soft sunrises, peekin' through the storm clouds, to start your day off with either... when you wake up after a good nights sleep in your... found just at the right time Night Camp.

We're in Fort Collins for a bit... to take care of veh. registrations, store business, family stuff... miscellaneous other stuff and nonsense... and then... I'm pretty sure I'll be ready to head back into some Colorado High Country... somewhere... and cleanse the Urban Dust out of my lungs!

Back in Over Populated Civilization for a Bit
Brian

It's the 21st Century... But a Man Can Still Dream of Freedom

Long about 9 miles above the Spring Creek Campground on the Gunnison National Forest, we found a little bit of heaven.

*High Above Gunnison*

 Our camp sits on a bench above Spring Creek as it winds past, headed I believe for the Taylor River. Near as I can tell that meets with the East River somewhere below us to form the Gunnison. If you keep following them down stream... you'll eventually cross the border at Yuma and be eating tacos in Mexico.

*Spring Creek on Gunnison National Forest*

 But for now, here in these mountains, the only thing I can hear is the gurgle of the stream as it twists and bends below our camp accompanied by the High Country Wind. The only thing I can see is the land God put under my feet for me to live on... and the Peace in my soul when I step outside, close my eyes and just suck in a full, deep, breath.

Our only neighbors are a family of Beavers.

It's a fault in my character, I guess, that brought me here now. It seems that just as the weather clears up and gets warm where I am, some unseen force moves me north and higher.

From the 4500 feet or so back on Ash Creek, by way of Zion to the 8200 feet or so camped on the San Juan. From there we moved north and east another hundred miles or so... and almost 2,000 feet higher.

What can I say? My flaws keep me moving and living in open and far country so how can I complain?

*Our Spring Creek Camp*

From camp, if you drop into the bottom and cross the creek on a small lil' log bridge you'll find there, you can follow up one of the lil' feeder streams that feeds the main creek.

Just about every stream and creek in this area has been corked up with Beaver Dams. Which I'm sure the fishermen are awful fond of, since they make sweet hidy holes to catch the big, heavy bellied trout that you have to fold in half to fit in a pan!

They pose a problem for such as me though. The first thing I think, whenever I see a Beaver Lodge is how lucky they are. And then, that thought tends to twist up uncomfortable knots in my shorts.

Ya See... I don't like bein' considered "Second Class" and just the thought of "Tyranny" makes my liver quiver... My eyes cross, my face contorts... the pressure in my head swells... and eventually smoke and sparks start spewin' out my ears.

*Beaver Lodge and Dam Built Without Permits or Inspections*

 Make no mistake... in the Kings "Federal Plutocracy"... "Second Class" is what we are... and "Tyranny" is how it is. We are, in their eyes, "Federal Property". You can spend your time hangin' fancy names on things and labeling the demanded behavior; "Good Citizenship", but that don't change reality none. We are the good lil' drones of the bullyin' Federal massuh.

I for one, weary of it. I look at the Beaver's around their Dens... or think of Wolves and I want the Freedom and Rights they enjoy.

 I mean look at it. That Beaver builds his house, wherever he chooses. There's no requirement from the King, sittin' at his desk in a fancy oval office two thousand miles away, for that Beaver to pay for a "permit" from his officers. (Let me drain a wet spot on my own land and they send in the SWAT!) There's no Inspection required... and that Beaver need not pay an annual tribute, to those who claim to be his masters... to LIVE in his own house.

We on the other hand... have to pay tribute just to sit on a rock and have a freakin' pic nic!

Let me go out in the woods and put up a cabin on Gods Earth, where ever and HOW ever I choose... can you just imagine the storm I'd stir up doin' that?

Mess with that Beaver's lodge and you get arrested, cited and fined. Resist them tearin' down the lodge YOU build... on the Bank of that same beavers pond... and... yup... YOU are gonna get arrested, cited and fined.

Seriously... Think about it for a moment... They "TELL" you that you're Free... but are you? Can you build your own home? Can you hunt for your supper? Freely?

That Beaver is Free on the Earth; Dependant only on his own courage and skill for Survival.  He has no need for the permission of other Beavers just to LIVE. I admire his Freedom. I am green eyed jealous.

Even the Wolf can hunt as he chooses. No permission must be secured, no licenses required. No season declared. Hell, he's got humans serving as his protective guards. Truthfully, even if the sheep and cattle that parasite is taking belong to me; it is I who will find trouble, if I should interfere with his Freedom to hunt as he pleases.

The Beaver and the Wolf have greater Rights to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness than a Man does. The values of this world have gotten twisted. They've been perverted.

"It's Not the Same! The Wolf gets hunted!" the parasite lovers cry. Run on down to the center of Albuquerque, Denver or Phoenix...and walk around for a few hours with a wallet in your pocket. Ya'll will be knowin' a lot greater danger from "Hunters" than modern wolves do! And let's face it... if you choose to defend yourself against THOSE hunters... you're likely to wind up in jail just as fast!

What in the hell is goin' on in human soh-si-uh-tee?

The powers and force of Government, seized by such as the wolf lovers has perverted basic right and wrong. It's Orwell's double speak in the flesh!

I don't want to take from other folks... I only want to be like the Beaver and the Wolf, Free on the Earth. Dependent on my Own Abilities and no one else's.

Yeah... I know... Don't get my Hopes up. Hold my hands out, you say... Hope in one and ... "Ahem!"... in the Other... and see which one fills first; Right? ;)

OK... Back to the Gunnison.

It's cold yet... this high. Our camp is sitting maybe a tall midget below 10,000 feet. Looking at the map I'm speculatin' we sit at 9,900 size 10's above the Pacific. What can I say. I told you the other day that I hunger for the High Up and Lonesome. It's a necessity for the survival of my soul :) Even if Goin' Down the Road is a competing lust.

The air here is crisp and clear. It's scented with the sweet smell of pine and that indefinable flavor of... Pure.

Spring Creek Reservoir is above us, and Taylor Reservoir sits at the top of Taylor Canyon just over the ridge to the East.

I spoke some time ago that I wasn't gon' let Cell Signal rule my life as strong as it has. Well, this camp is an example. If I'd let signal dictate where I put the trailer jacks down... I'd not be soaking in the Joyful Freedom of this camp. When I look at the signal meter it says X _ _ _ _  :) Nope! None! Nada! NO CONNECTION! You is in the 1880's world my friend!

Well... Ok... They didn't have my coffee maker or Ipod in 1880... but if I look out the window... and imagine I'm looking through a hole in a cabin wall... I can FEEL like 1880! :) and when the chill of 10,000 feet in the Rockies sinks a lil' to deep into my bones... I can step back inside and enjoy that 20th century propane furnace! :)

*Spring Creek Reservoir on the Gunnison National Forest*

I've found another benefit too. Since I tend to go off in several directions at once... trying hard to multi task and ending up with the confusion leaving me "No-Tasking", having this quiet around me allows my spirit to focus on my "art"... that being the whittling of stories.

The newest book I'm working on got set to simmer for a bit, 'cause my inspiration ran a little stale... I guess.

But now, in this camp, the next and second installment in my "Jeb Taylor" series has caught fire with the inspiration of this gorgeous country. "With the Heart of a Man" is building fast now. With modest luck in finding continuing inspiration in the camps I find, I could have this tale finished up by mid summer... a bit later than my imagined timeline... but then... that's what I get for "planning'!

While I thought my first novel; "A matter of Honor" was a good one... and the start of a second series "A pair of Second Chances" was a far better story, I'm coming to believe this one just might be the best of the three.

Kinda fun to think I've not hit my peak yet! :) I had strung 4,000 words together this morning before we left for our hike! I expect to add a few more thousand as soon as I'm done carving this post! The High Up and Lonesome seems to grease my word whittler.

Ash Fork in Arizona and the mountainside above Sula in Montana had that same affect.

Guess I should hang in "out of touch" country a lil' more huh? 

Ah... but it ain't to be. Commitments have us needing to be on the front range by the 24th, so this jewel of a camp shall remain... but we'll be moving along in a few days.

 Swelling My Soul in the High Up and Lonesome

Brian

Gettin' Up into the High Country... Goin' Down the Road

So. there's two ways over the mountain from our camp, if you want to get from our camp near Mancos...  and up to Montrose. One east... one west.

You could run east a few miles turn north and roll straight up 550 out of Durango... climbing over Coal Bank, Molas and Red Mountain passes. 

Well... since we ran that way twice, up and back, just last week... I chose the less direct, western route. It's not a new road to us, been on it many times before. Sometimes, I like it even more.

The scenery changes with each season... in the fall... you damn near need welding glasses, the colors are so deep and full and bright in the sun.

From our old camp east of Mancos we turned off 160 making a left hook up 184, swinging right on 145 at Dolores then just past Placerville we swung right again, completing the hook to Ridgway.

*The High Rockies near Ridgway*

 That's where we linked back up with 550 and turned back  North West and rolled to our Night Camp at the La Posado de Walmart resort in Montrose! ;)

Along the way is another high pass... This one known as Lizard Head.

Somewhere along in there I spotted a wide spot in a likely place and spur of the moment... decided I was hungry. I smoked the binders and pulled the rig off for a High Mountain Lunch.

I'll tell you... if it wasn't for commitments and chores stackin' up on the front range... I'm kinda doubtful the rig would have made it all the way to Montrose this evening! :)

My gutline might have been better off for it too! I never thought the High Lonesome could be the cause of a Puss Gut! That run over the mountain had me feeling pretty shiny, which had me volunteering a budget busting supper at the Chilis across the street from the Wally World Resort!

Grilled Salmon and Shrimp, and a Good beer! :)... finished up with a shared plate of a Molten Chocolate Heart attack on a plate... sweet enough to tighten your belt enough to choke off your breath... if I'd not been smart enough to leave it off!

Tomorrow when we continue our roll a lil' farther east... We're hunting a camp for our Daughter and Grandkids to join us for a few days... and Hopefully their Dad if he can cut himself loose from the job for a bit.

High Lonesome, Family... and a Big Red Motorcycle... Shining Times... and who the hell cares if the budget looks a lot like that fraying cable holding the Hero suspended above the raging waters of the river far below! :)

Why worry? I can't swim worth a damn anyhoo!

I'm Feelin' and Urge for Wild and Wooly
Brian

Itches, Curiosities, Ramblings and Whines...

Well... there's been 'nuff loafin' 'round this camp... Though I didn't get a majority part of the work I had planned... completed ;) ...

Time is here to get this Ol' raggedy rig rollin' an' rattlin' again.

The sewer's full... the fresh tank is dry... the trash can's full...

The guy in the forest service  pickup is startin' to peer at us with a jaundiced eye... and my hitch is itchin'.

Not to mention...

That the weather of the past few days...

Is showin' signs of relaxin' just a mite... which would allow us to pull on out 'thout stirrin' up a mess.

There's business and family waitin' east a ways... so we'll start movin' again probably late in the morning, or early in the afternoon... we're in a turrible hurry!... and see where we end up...

*The Ranch Gate that ain't a Gate on a Ranch that ain't a Ranch*

Been finding a few "Curiosities the past several days... A few days back we took a run up LaPlata Canyon, and I saw this gate.

It's a sure 'nuff sign of a townie that built hisself a "ranch"... when the Gate he puts up... would barely stop a man in a wheel chair... 'cept for the top and bottom rails, and the lil' bit of stuff in the center... this gate got no GATE at all! A Horse, a Cow, a sheep or a short Pig could walk right up... and step right through that sucker! A short man could walk through 'thout duckin'!

... and I'll bet He'll be wonderin' why his "critters" don't stay home! :)

Then... down in town... I discovered just how "Poor" we are ;) I just find it curious... If you described to someone... what I been doin' for two years an' more; Do you think you could convince 'em that I'm livin' in poverty? Nope? I would hope not...

So... when you look at these numbers of a "welfare" program the Feds got workin' that I found in Mancos... according to this... I've got to pile up something like an 18 or 20% improvement to my income... to NOT qualify for this particular Welfare...

Hmmm... Could it be that somebody needs to take a lil' closer look at things? and Maybe...just Maybe (look real close) ... whoever is drawing this particular bit of welfare (it's a food distribution thing) should cancel their CABLE first! ...before they go lookin' for hand outs?

I mean... food or TV... what's your priority and responsibility... huh?

and remember... I'm at least 15%, likely more... Under their "guideline"... and I sure as HELL ain't poor! ;) seems to me, "Somebody" just likes havin' folks thinkin' that they're "Dependent" and "need help"... Just Sayin'...

Now, this poor picture is an example of what happens when you go off on a back roadin' expedition... and see what should make a good photograph... even if it is a rainy, overcast day...

... and reach for your camera...

... Only to discover, that you left it sittin' on the table top in the rig.

This is all you get when the only camera you have with you is your telephone! :)

Guess I need to make a checklist... for loafers... of what to take on day trips and tape it to the steering wheel!...

Picked up a fresh six pack of beer on the way back to camp from that lil' circle... and I don't get it. There's some folks out there that call themselves Beer Snobs. Only drink the BEST... they say.

So... wantin' only the BEST for myself... which is why I ride a Yamaha Raider! :) ... I picked up, for the second time, that SORT of Brew that THEY (the Beer Snobs) claim is the BEST...

I picked out a different Brand than my last effort at educating my Beer Palate... figuring maybe THAT would change something... 

For the second time... I took a pull on that cold amber brew... and my instant, unadulterated, un-subtle, clear and knowing reaction when the stuff hit my taste buds was... PPFFFFTTT! YUCK... PAHTOOY! YECH!!

I don't understand Abstract Art... I don't understand folks that like big cities... I don't understand boxer shorts... and I DON'T UNDERSTAND... how Anyone can think IPA is any sort of good tasting Beer!

It tastes 'bout like what I would expect the water I wrung out of my boots, after riding all day in the rain on the Alaskan Highway to taste like... if I ran it through a garbage disposal first!

I've got five of 'em sitting all iced up and chilly... in the fridge for anybody who stops by and likes the muck! :)

Guess it's time to finish off the last of this mornings coffee... and get to packin' up... if we're to make our likely "night camp" at the Montrose Walmart! :) ... I wonder if that good lil' coffee hut is still there... just across the parking lot?

Hitchin' Up and Goin' Down the Road
Brian