Wilderness Blues- Ramblings from the Great Land

I'm a firm believer in the idea that the more gadgets you have, the more problems you're going to encounter. A case in point is a modern car. Not only do they cost as much as a house used to, you can't work on them yourself. I suppose I could change the oil if I wanted to climb underneath it and dismantle the cover beneath the car. Lord knows if I would be able to unscrew the filter and open the oil pan plug. I know that you can't grease the axles because they don't have zirc fittings anymore. I guess if something wears out, you have to buy a new one, at an enormous price. My car, which isn't fancy at all, has a back-up camera, which I love, as well as heated seats, which I'm also very fond of. There is also a feature that allows me to plug in my smart phone, but I don't have one, so I don't use it. At one time, stoves, refrigerators, and washers and dryers used to last twenty or more years. They had one job to do and they did it. They didn't cal...

  Almost every day, either Jan or I will ask the other "what do you want for supper?" I used to come up with a menu for the week, or at least I did for a few times, then I stopped doing it for some unknown reason. As much as I like to eat, you'd think that I could take the time to look in the refrigerator or the freezer and come up with a plan. It's not like we don't have anything to eat. For some reason, all the healthy stuff that I've bought, like the broccoli, lettuce and peppers are just sitting in the refrigerator getting brown and wilty, while the non- perishable canned goods get used up. What's that about? Do we have an aversion to healthy eating now? It almost seems that way. Produce costs too much to throw away. We eat the grapes and bananas pretty quickly, but I have a container of fresh spinach that Autumn gave us that hasn't been touched yet. What gives? I spoke to my friend Buffalo Bob the other day, and he was complaining that he just doe...

     I know that Christmas has come and gone, for better of for worse. Of course now comes the aftermath of having to pay for it all. It's always better to give than receive, until the Visa bill arrives. I'm just glad we don't have to give gifts on New Years Eve. As you can see at the top of the page, we completed the book that documented our trip through some of the southwest states on our way to the Grand Canyon. As I had mentioned in previous posts, Peeing Across America finally came about. We gave a copy to all the kids for Christmas, and the book seemed to be enjoyed. Unfortunately, Autumn got a first hand look at it because I didn't have the technical ability to put it together. So she knew she would be getting a copy for Christmas. Also, we used her pictures, although I had some great ones that probably looked a little bit better, sooo... I won't go in to all the gifts given or received. Let it suffice to say, I think we all had a pretty good Christmas. I had...

    I don't doubt that there are a few people out there who might be panicking because there is only four more shopping days until Christmas, and they still haven't gotten a gift for their one and only. I'd be willing to bet that this isn't the first Christmas that you've been caught off guard. Time flies when you're having fun, and especially if you're down at Kelly's Bar and Grill forgetting all about your obligations back home. I'm primarily addressing this to the male population, as I suspect that your wife or girlfriend has had your gift bought, wrapped and hiding under the bed where it's been for the past month or more.  I know that everyone has a different financial situation to deal with, and unlike the commercials for Lexus or Kay's Jewelers, we can't all fork up tens of thousands of dollars to give our better half a luxury car or diamond bracelet. Not to worry guys, I've come up with the perfect gift; a fire extinguisher. Do...

  As often happens in Alaska, when the skies get clear, winds start to blow. This past Friday night, the wind started blowing harder than normal. The weather channel had mentioned winds in the thirty five to forty five knot range, with possible gusts to eighty. It seemed like they were being a bit extreme, but I know from experience that such hurricane force winds are certainly possible, especially in the winter. As the wind roared outside my window all Friday night, I could hear the glass flexing and branches hitting the side of the house, as well as the trees trying to resist the force of the wind, bending and snapping back in an endless game of stretching to their limits. I spent a restless night, waking frequently, expecting at any moment to see the night light in the master bathroom dark, and the appliances in the house completely still. About six-thirty in the morning on Saturday, Jan said that we'd lost power. I was already awake in anticipation of such an event. I dressed a...

    I guess I'm old fashioned. I still address Christmas cards to friends, near and far. I know that a lot of people have stopped sending them altogether, and I can't really blame them. The cost of just one first class stamp is around 78 cents if I recall. I bought four books of them the other day. The post office that we use has a very limited supply of stamps. You can choose one design for Christmas or go with the old standard, the American flag. I could order them on-line from USPS and enjoy a variety of scenes, but the sap suckers charge me the postage to send the stamps, so I go with whatever this post office has.   It's nice to get any kind of greeting in the form of an email I suppose, but getting a card, something you can look at again and again without fear of erasing it is kind of nice. To me it also shows that someone cares enough to take the time to write a little something and sit down and address the card, and it's nice to know that they think enough of...