MemDay Weekend

I've drawn a complete blank about additional wisdom from my mother, and the WAG #25 assignment has left me uninspired to the topic, so I thought I'd post a photo I took this past weekend while chasing steam locomotives down near Chama, New Mexico.

This image was captured lying in a ditch near a grade crossing. Believe me, I checked carefully for rattlers and bullsnakes before settling in. Also, I was certain that a young man, who had set himself up by the RR crossing sign was going to be in my photos, but the train was kind enough to obscure him while still allowing the RR sign to be seen. Timing is everything. :)

The Goddess of Strife and the Big Blow

Hello, friends.

I took Sunday off because it was simply too nice to be inside.

I'm posting late today because the weather here in CO was a big blow. There's a personal weather station up the street (that posts its info on the InterNets)which was showing gusts of 30 mph and sustained winds of 20. We've had brown-outs around here often enough that I dared not have the computer on, in case we lost power. I had a UPS but that failed just last week.

I think the other reason I've been lackadaisical about posting is the WAG #23 I put up the other day. Part of it was the fact it hit close to home, being that the dear husband and I are motorcyclists. The other part was the inspiration of the story, which was someone on Facebook who I feel takes too many chances.

The world is a dangerous place, and I am sometimes bothered by my relative safety. I have at least three friends (possibly more) who have had issues with stalkers. Granted, they're all better looking than I am, but this has never been something I've worried about. Do I put a big social shield out? Perhaps I exude a sense of "Don't Fuck With Me?" that keeps all but the nastiest people away?

The Dear Husband and I were discussing a news story he saw about the Colorado Preppers. One of the members was boasting how he and his family had enough food to tide them over for a year, in preparation for a disaster. It seemed a bit excessive, while at the same time, we have enough food to hold us over for at least two weeks, should we get snowed in. We have our own well and a generator and headlamps and sleeping bags and a tank full of LP... I guess we're preppers too.

Rebel preppers, cuz we don't hang out with other preppers.

Is it the motorcycling that has made us into such cautious people? On a bike, you can't trust other people to behave properly behind the wheel, and when they don't, YOUR safety is in your hands and your anticipatory paranoia.

The years of being cavers certainly have driven us towards self-sufficiency. When bad things happen in a wild cave situation, it's easy for the situation to go pear-shaped really fast. That's the time when 'self-rescue' is the hope and 'full-rescue' is the nightmare. The Texas Region caving community (for a while) was listing the phone number of a funeral home in case of emergency.

Okay, that was just an asshole thing to do... but it did kinda sum things up.

Anyway, we're of a self-sufficiency bent, and part of the process is to anticipate what can get you into trouble. No, we don't lock ourselves in the house and never leave - we do like to enjoy life, after all - but we have gotten into the habit of not provoking trouble. The Goddess of Strife is a mean old bitch, and she'll get you whenever it pleases her.

Well...I've rambled enough. Tomorrow is Suesday, writer's group, lunch with a fellow writer, trip to the grocery store, human interaction. Hope you enjoy it, too.

Snow! Do you believe it?

I couldn't believe it when I awoke in the middle of the night and found snow falling. I went back to sleep, and when I got up again in the morning, I was surprised all over again.

SNOW! It's May 12th! We're not in the mountains! It's just over a month until Summer begins!

What is this white stuff?!?!?!

Sigh...welcome to Colorado. By noon, it was entirely melted and gone.

A New Venture?

Last night was another meeting of the writing group I'm trying to start at the local library. Once again, I did not have anyone attend who wished to join my merry little group...BUT... it turns out that there is already a writing group in town, so I'll join that. We all learn from each other. :)

More Graphical Spewings

I had yet another craving to create and opened my 'graphic' file to re-address a piece I started but never looked at again. It contained a rather odd zigzag and a couple of stars that were made using a Photoshop preset tool.

As you can see, the stars have been removed but the mountains remain. That's rather opposite of what the poets and the philosophers tell us, eh?

I Love The Library

The local county library system is opening a new facility in the town that's a few miles south of us. Now, I liked the old facility just fine, but it sounded like they were outgrowing things pretty quickly, and like an indulging grandparent with a favorite grandchild, I can't deny pleading demands.

I just received an email from the library telling me that the new 'digs' will be opening on May 30th. Cool beans, in and of itself, but the email went on to say "will include the official ribbon-cutting, square dancing, a Western-style BBQ supper and ice cream social, trick-rope lessons for kids, storytelling, performances and more." The performances include "an acoustic jam session. Musicians from all around are invited to bring their fiddles, guitars and banjos to join in and play for fun."

Now does that sound like a great way to launch a library or what? I may even go and take pictures.

Well, I'll be dog gone...

I was not aware that you could post photos directly to your articles. This changes everything!