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 Sorry, but no brushes with death this time
out, but as I write this the dogs and I have just returned from a hike
here in the Lynx Lake campground above Prescott, AZ...where we were
fortunate to have a "Dances With Wolves" moment.
As we approached the first climb of the jaunt, Chief got a scent and
just up ahead on the hill in front of us was a good size coyote.
Now these are not the urban variety they show you on TV when the "East
Coast" transplants complain they just ate "Fluffy" and demand something
be done with the varmints. These are the healthy looking, full coated
variety...
Anyway, as we moved along the trail he kept a careful watch and
followed until he finally yawned and sat down to watch us. I was more
than entertained and hated to do it, but he was getting far too
comfortable around 'man' and there are too many YAHOOS who frequent
theese forests, so I allowed the dogs, while stiill on leash, to charge
him.
Chief let out his Catahoula cry and our new found friend moved off,
still far too confidently, for my taste however. The three of them will
now be looking out for him around every turn for weeks to come.
I mentioned we were fortunate, as everything else that can't fly or
climb a tree seems to have vacated the area.. the reason was evident on
my first morning here when a large Mountain lion crossed the road in
front of my truck... This was only the second time in all of my years
in the wilderness to catch a glimspe of one and it was even more
special the second time around. He literally crossed the road and the
adjoining ridges in 2 1/2 leaps...AMAZING!...
And I say he, only because I cornered a guy from 'Fish & Game' who
said they had tracked his den to a nearby hill and that in the short
time he had claimed this territory, he was making short order of the
local deer population...and while I have not heard him yet, the Camp
Host says he vocalizes most every night...should I be lucky enough to
encounter him on one of our hikes, the dogs and I will not be charging
him as there is a reason the movie was not titled "Dances With Cougars".
Completely Off Topic.
Just the other night I was trying to convince my friend Matt Suess, my
favorite landscape
photographer, that he should get a Heeler to fill the void left by a
very recent loss...when I went to search for some links to send him on
the breed, I discovered that the most famous of all Heelers, Skidboot,
had recently passed...
For any dog lover who isn't aware of him, please watch
both of
these and you won't be disappointed...RIP Skidboot...
I can offcially announce that the "Indiana Curse" has been officially
exorcised...the people there were wonderful and wonderfully responsive
to the work...a bit sadly, I can't tell you how many of them came into
the booth, looked longingly at the images and said"why do I live in
this stupid state?"
I finally asked one very special woman, why so many chose to stay given
their sentiments and she said very matter of factly, that it's the
distaste for the state that bonds all hoosiers...and that because of
that she had to stay.
That said, when I arrived in in Indianapolis after my close encounter
with a train, I was still not so sure...you see as I arrived at the
Indianapolis State Fairgrounds after having been told over the phone
that, "We never turn anyone away", I was all but "turned away"...unless
you can "fit it in there", the campground monitor said....so I
did...boy times have changed...six months ago I would have taken out
the fairground phone lines, but I digress...
I say that because getting turned away might have been the best result,
because while I would be attempting to sell my photos to a crowd with a
more artistic bent, I was now camped among Indiana's annual "Monster
Truck" show! (more about that later).
 Well having backed my 40 ft abode into the
site with only the assistance of an elderly woman who was afraid I
might back over her pop-top Coleman camper, things were looking
brighter...that was until I heard the "Monster" truck parked next to my
window fire up...
Now, I've been to quite a few air shows in my life, but this din was
something else.. and I've come to learn in "Monster" truck circles
that's a good thing, because it was an endless line of show goers who
stopped by to ask my new neighbor to "fire'er up"....and so he
did...all weekend.
 Random thought...I've always liked
singer/songwriter Gurf Morlix
but I really like his new release, "Diamond To Dust" and the song "Were
You Lying Down When You Stood Me Up""
Random Thought #2
I forgot what reverse racism was like until I went into an inner-city
Indianpolis restaurant for some take out and sat at the bar for 20
minutes when finally a woman whose job wasn't to serve me came to the
rescue...she was tipped handsomely...damn cowboy hats!
Yet Another Random Thought
It's getting GD cold out side here in Flagstaff...WeatherBug.com
says the wind chill is now at 17 degrees and all I know is the heater
in my four-season trailer can't keep pace and the generator is almost
out of gas...extra blankets for all tonight!
 America in Decline
There's war in Iraq, the borders are out-of-control, the country is
split like no time since the civil war and a major Indianapolis radio
station devoted an entire hour to the subject of...do you, or do you
not make your bed?
Things I've Learned
Oklahomans are to date the nicest folks “I’ve run across...a close
second were those from St. Charles, Missouri.
The Hoosiers of Indiana are an accepting bunch...I told a woman I’d
fallen in love with a barrel racer from Indiana a few months back but
it didn't work out. And without a second thought, or trace of surprise,
she replied, 'and why didn’t he love you?'....after my initial
confusion, I realized, unlike the West, it's not just women who race
barrels back East...her embarrassed daughter could only exclaim, 'mom!'
and quickly made an exit.
Despite all of their amazing qualities, dogs share one not so
desireable quality with people in one respect..they are never are
satisfied with what’s right in front of them...they always think there
is something better under that bush, around the corner or up that tree.
I love American Indian story tellers...I loathe East Indian customer
service reps.
Women wearing Daisy Dukes & cowboy boots are fashionable at
Indianapolis "Monster" truck shows and tacky most everywhere else...but
they're still fun to look at.
Willow (my Chesapeake) will cost me everything I own one day.
I have the answer to one of America's great unanswered
questions...without going into further detail, cops really don't have
anything better to do.
 Diesel (my coy dog) will meet an untimely
demise.
Chief and I will grow old together and penniless because of that GD
Willow, but old just the same.
For some odd reason, many of the local restaraunt cooks and servers in
Antlers, OK wear medical scrubs as their 'official' uniform...part of
me thinks it projects cleanliness, but the other part wonders wear the
meat comes from...
I should never take time away from the photography...while in Madison,
IN I could actually get some television reception and got caught up in
Ken Burn's "The War"...couldn't stop watching and got nothing done... a
favorite line was from one of it's heros..."The war was a chance for a
little boy to be something he wasn’t." Ladies, (and it's only my
opinion) if you never learn anything else about men again, that's all
any man wants every now and then.
I could never live in Antlers, Oklahoma...I'd never get anything done
there either...I've never seen so many small animals, (turtles, snakes,
tarantulas, Armadillo) trying to cross the road...and I of course had
to stop and assist them all.
 Just for the Record...
You’ve all seen it as tattoos, wall art, coffee mugs and more...it’s
the “End of the Trail” symbol so many people exhibit in their attempt
to show their affinity for the American Indian...for all who do, let it
be known that the defeated horse and warrior, heads sunken...depicting
a tragic “trail of tears” or “long walk”, despite good intentions, is
not at all respectful or appreciated...
Foot In Mouth
I'm not sure whether I've been preoccupied or more mindful of my mouth,
but I was not guilty of any egregious 'foot in mouth' incident this
month, although I was not so tactfully asked by a fellow
customer/resident at the RV repair facility why I kept referring to the
'Monster Truck' show as a 'Monster Truck' show when it was clearly a
'4-Wheel Jamboree'...I stand corrected.
That movie I co-wrote with my good friend Kevin, is out on DVD...I'm
only mentioning it because I promised I would, not because I'm proud of
it...It's called "Virginia"... 'nuf said...
The Code of the West
Finally, and with Ken Burn's "The War" still resonating in my
mind...today's generation could capture just a bit of that 'the
greatest generation's" courage by adopting this "Code of the West" as
forwarded to me by new RoadNotes subscriber, Aleta Bohlmann.
1. Live each day with courage. (Real courage is being scared to death
and saddling up anyway)
2. Take pride in your work. (Cowboying doesn't build character it
reveals it)
3. Always finish what you started. (When you're riding through
hell...keep riding)
4. Do what has to be done. (The true test of a man's honor was how much
he would risk to keep it intact)
5. Be tough, but fair. (The Golden Rule was nothing less than a key to
survival)
6. When you make a promise, keep it. (A man is only as good as his
word) 7. Ride for the brand. (The cowboy's greatest devotion was to his
calling and his way of life)
8. Talk less and say more. (When there's nothing more to say, don't be
saying it)
9. Remember that some things aren't for sale. (To the cowboy, the best
thing's in life aren't "things")
10. Know where to draw the line. (There's right and there's wrong, and
nothing in between)
Until next time....be well and as always, please excuse
any typos (and you know who you are) and most importantly, "Save a
Horse, Ride a Mustang."
Jim |
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