Captain's Log Star Date Friday 4/22/16

With a nod to the fact that, yes I need to sit and write regularly again... Each day... By hand and electronically... I sit this Friday morning following coffee and chores... Outside with the boys... Jay finishing his breakfast outside as is his preference... As I do my reading and writing while listening to the too close noise of life in the "city"... Preferring instead to be sitting outside amid nature this will have to suffice for now... 

At least the air is fresh, the breeze light and cool... No one nearby to interrupt with incessant talking... 

Work continues on the RV... Most of that in my ability to complete being done, it will soon need to be removed somewhere for additional work/repair... Hopefully at limited expense and be ready again for life on the road... 

Sadly, no that's not the word... For I am thankful that while repairs to it and my finances are underway I have shelter and a home for myself and the boys... 

So that while we repair, it will be prior to next winter before we go... Lest we experience a windfall to facilitate an earlier departure... 

The extent of my ability to facilitate repairs limited by experience and tools is shown in the astetics(sp???) of the job... Which is outweighed by the functionality of my work... The water leaks are stopped... The inside is and will stay dry... While looking disordered... It works... To stop the rain and my compulsory disorder... We (the boys and I) are happy with it...  

Looking upon it as a metaphor of our life... Patched... But still working, surviving, even thriving in our new reality... The freedom from stuff unnecessary to our happiness... Happy to be free of the need for "stuff" and with the point to remember... Don't fill the apartment with stuff we don't need or can't fit into the RV... 

We are abundant in our necessities for life... And grateful for them... Food... Shelter... Each other... Time... Appreciation of life... Sunrises... Sunsets... Breezes... Peace... Quiet... Un-rushed walks... Books... Friendships and family that count... While abundance of these latter two may mean something to some... We choose the ones that truly count as abundance... 

Life is good this morning and every morning... So to avoid the risk of repeating myself... I will put down my pen...  

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood and time for another walk... 

Story at 11

What does it mean when you talk to your dogs??? What does it mean when having “discussions” with your dogs... You answer for them??? What does it mean that while you are answering for them... They win the "discussion"???

An early start to the day had us out for a walk at first light… Breakfast, journaling, another walk, a trip to the gym, shower, lunch, more walks and cleaning the RV… 

Emails, phone calls and apartment complex paperwork while watching Spring Training Baseball on the Internet…

On an after dinner walk with the boys… Their dinner not mine…

Realizing I still needed to cook my dinner… I mention this and the fact to Simon that Dad’s work never seems to be done… Followed by the question… How come???

Simon’s reply… “Don’t tell me you’re tired… I do my job 24/7.”

Really, what’s your job???

“Being cute, Dad… Being cute.”

I laughed, called him a creative genius and told him I’d have to write this story tonight…  He just smiled and took a shit.

So what does it mean that while you are answering for them… They win the “discussion”???  

DISGUSTED!!!

So disgusted with the ability and ease that the human race can sink to the lows it does…

Working 11pm to 7am shift Friday night at the hotel… I thought the drunks and druggies I was forced to deal with then were enough for now…

I was wrong… Drunks and druggies… I feel no compassion for… They make their choice… Live and die with the consequences… I don’t give a fuck as long as innocent people are not hurt…

Today… My disgust for human indifference to innocent life has hit a new high… A knock on my door early this evening… My neighbor informs me there’s a pet carrier in the dumpster with a dead dog in it… WTF???

Grabbing my jacket to go check it out in the rain… I ask her to call 911… Can animal control come tonight??? Sadly, they won’t be here until morning…  

Fortunately, I know whose dog it was and hopefully they’ll be cited for animal abuse… Low life’s on public assistance… Fat, disgusting and not a shred of personal respect…

They had mentioned the puppy was sick… I didn’t think much about it at the time… It’s normal for puppies… They outgrow it… IF they are properly cared for… IF they are seen by a vet… IF they are properly immunized…

None of these “IF’s” pertained… So today a happy, friendly and at one time full of life puppy is dead because dirt bags didn’t do the “IF’s”… No respect for themselves… No respect for the one person in their home who I enjoyed interacting with… No respect for innocent life…

I am totally disgusted… An innocent life ended because of neglect… Don’t get the damn dog in the first place if you have no intention or no ability to do what is right…

Then to callously just bag it up and throw it in the community dumpster like the piece of trash you actually are has me so pissed off… I can’t find the words to express it…

We’ll see what morning brings… It best bring some animal abuse charges for these pieces of human shit…

And people still wonder why I long for the mountains and to speak to no humans… 

Hell, It's Always Been About the Adventure...

The excitement accompanying decisions made this past weekend and tonight’s full moon... The boys and I are sending full moon manifesting adventure vibrations out to the universe… A special thank you for tonight’s full moon blog pic provided by the best guitar player I know… My cousin Dave Viterna…

  

Continuing my literary journey through “Walden”… It becomes more real to me with each turn of a page… “Life simply and wisely is not a hardship, but a pastime…”

As the weather continues to warm I’ll be getting the RV ready… Cleaned and doing a few repairs… The boys and I will be geared up for our next off the grid adventure… Five months in the Montana Mountains… We’re leaving mid-May…

Sharing this news with my best friend of 45yrs earlier this month… He made the comment… “What a life you’ve led.” Replying with… “It’s all about the adventure now.” I quickly corrected myself by adding… “Hell, it’s always been about the adventure.”

Maybe I should change the name of this blog… Ok, I just did… Sometime the titles comes before writing… Sometimes it comes while writing…

There’s still a chance we’ll be heading to Garnett, Montana… A 19^th century ghost town… To work as a tour guide… A job that will still leave time for quality time alone in the mountains… I’m waiting to hear… But we leave as soon as it’s warm enough… Mid-May regardless…

No drunken assholes walking in the hotel lobby after midnight on the weekends… No apartment tenants to baby sit… No traffic… No noise…

I am listening to the neighbor’s kid scream like a banshee at 930pm, as I write this… There’ll be none of that to hear either… Fuck you, Mormons… Have some more ‘cuz your bishop told you to… Turn all your homes into baby mills… WTF???

There’ll probably will be no internet connection or cell phone service as well… Who cares??? Unlike many people today… I can read and write cursive… Yeah, that’s a shout out to my Catholic school education… I’ll fill up notebooks in lantern light by hand again…

There’ll be campfires... And star filled night skies like no one from NY has ever seen… Stars so close you’ll think you could touch them…

There’ll be apple pie moonshine to sip beside the fire… One batch is made two or three more to be put up before we leave… Thoreau and Emerson to read…

Long walks, mountain streams and pictures to take which will sadly not do the beauty justice…

Asked often if it bothers me to live life alone in the wilderness… I can only reply… Life alone in the city is what bothers me… I never feel alone in the mountains with my dogs…

I almost always feel alone even in this small city…

Surrounded by people and unnatural noise… Cars, sirens, screaming babies, rude and entitled people… Phones, TVs… Idiots sharing shitty music at stop lights with the bass turned up so high… Potato fed Idaho white boys wanting to be gangster… How about you try to be better than that instead…

I’ll be listening to the music of a crackling fire and instead of car exhaust I’ll be enjoying the wonderful smell of a campfire every night…

I will be making some videos to post on you tube if/when an internet connection is available… I have already filled a notebook with video skit ideas and characters… If I’m lucky… I won’t have one until September… I would prefer not to have the distraction…

Can you tell the boys and I are excited to go???

What happens in September??? Well, there are several options… None of which need to be discussed now… We’ll see how this 5 month adventure plays out before we decide…

Yes… WE… The boys are a part of every decision… Sadly, Riley will only share these adventures with us in spirit now… But share them he will… As he chases slow rabbits in doggie heaven… His picture the only one currently gracing the walls of our apartment… We’ll leave a marker on his grave on our way out of town…

Well, it’s time to get this posted before headed to bed… Dreams of campfires dancing in my head… I’m counting the days… 

The Continuing Saga of Front Desk Adventures…

Phone rings tonight…

Me: Blah, Blah, Blah… This is Steve… Can I help you???

Lady: We’re coming through town with our kids…

(Me thinking… Like that matters???)

Lady: We’d like a room for tonight…

Me: I’m sorry we are sold out tonight…

Lady: What??? How come you’re sold out??? What’s going on??? Blah, blah, blah…

(Me thinking… Her blah, blah, blah… translates to… Bitch, Bitch, Bitch)

Me: Patiently explain I know that might be hard to believe… But she didn’t sound smart… So I talked slow…) to her why we are sold out and what’s going on…

Lady: And that’s the reason you’re sold out??? Well, we’ll never stay the again!!!

(Me thinking… Well… You’re not staying here tonight, either… If we knew you were coming through town tonight we would have saved you a room… It’s called RESERVATIONS!!! I’m it’s not my fucking fault you didn’t make any…)

Me: Glad I could help… Goodbye… 

All the Rabbits are Slow in Doggie Heaven

I went for a car ride today… All by myself… Don’t worry, I’m not gonna sing for ya’… Who’s got that song stuck in their head now???

My dad had to carry me down the steps and help me into the car… I can still walk, but it hurts and I can’t go far… I get tired…

I got the whole back car seat to myself… My brothers stayed home… They will take good care of you, dad… We doggie talked about it…

Dad, and, our friend, Vicky took me to see the doc… They were very nice there and gave me a blanket to lay on…

I was so relaxed I fell asleep in with my head in my dad’s lap…                               

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Wow!!! I feel like I can run again… It doesn’t hurt… I’m running off the leash… Dad is still sitting with my head in his lap… What is this place??? Lots of dogs here… some cats here… I’ll try to ignore them…  

I feel like I’m almost flying… Ha, dad used to joke that is was time for me to fly when he would pick me up out of the RV or to carry me down the apartment steps…

Hey, I wonder who those guys are running towards me… I think I’ve seen pictures of one… Hey wait, I played with the other one a few times when I was little… Ha, almost knocked dad out cold, one time…

Sniff… Snifff… Snifff… “Hi, Riley, I’m Jack… This is Buddy… He told me you two already met a long time ago”… Sniffff, Snifffff…

Wow, yeah it was a long time ago… I’m sure we all sniffed a lot of butts between then and now… I heard a lot about you, Jack… Did you know I was coming here today???

“Yes, your dad told us… Said to make sure we met you at the bridge and showed you around… You took good care of him through a lot of adventures… He wants us to take good care of you… We will all see him again some day.”

Showed me around where??? Where are we???

Buddy, never one to wait to speak, screamed… “YOU’RE IN DOGGIE HEAVEN, RILEY!!!”

Doggie Heaven???

“Yeah, it’s great here… We all can run as fast as ever… No one’s legs hurt… No one ever gets sick… This place is great!!!”

Is he telling the truth, Jack??? My legs feel great now… They will never hurt again???

“He’s telling the truth, Riley… No more pain, run all you like…”

“See, I told you… And even better… All the rabbits are slow in Doggie Heaven…”

Really, we get to chase slow rabbits??? That’s cool…

“Let’s go chase some now…”

Hey, wait… Sniff, Snifff, Sniffff…

You smell that??? I ain’t wasting my time chasing slow rabbits… It’s FIFI… SHE’S IN HEAT AGAIN!!!!

It’s not just my legs that work good again… 

Thoroughly Thoreau

In a Facebook status posted earlier today…

The boys and I have been living "Off the Grid" for more than a year... But as we sit in the grip of the Idaho winter and the even colder weather to come... Plans have been made to move into an apartment next week... Details to be announced next week following the move... 

My question... Is this an admission to "getting soft" in my old age??? Luckily, they have pills for that...

Yes, it is for “The Boys”… Riley for sure… And as I have said many times previously, all decisions are based on what’s best for them… Riley’s get up and go hasn’t got up and gone yet… And as long as there’s still a light in his eyes and I can manage his pain with meds… He’ll get the best life I can give him… 

The other two as well, but they are doing fine… And we will be “Off the Grid” again…

One thing to consider/to remember is… Less is more… Don’t fill the apartment with too many things that I don’t need… Things I will have to get rid of when winter is over and it is time to go off grid again…

Whether that is this coming summer or we wait to just head south prior to next winter remains to be seen… And I am already looking forward to it… We’ve learned a lot about this life in the last year… This break gives us some time to make some upgrades and repairs to the RV… So we’ll be ready to head into the next round of off grid adventure with a better plan… And thoroughly Thoreau…

Happy trails to you… Until I write again… Help me get my readership up... Please share the link to my blog...