Possum Kingdom and July 4th Weekend

Despite the inauspicious beginning of family vacation, it eventually smoothed out and we ended up having a very good time. Most notable of all was playing golf with my wife for the first time.

Below: What a cool chick. Eight months pregnant and can still tee it up.

Melissa and Neil in Salado

Snow Days

In North Texas, March snowstorms are not unheard of, but not all too common.

A smaller storm blew through Sunday evening and left an inch of snow on our front yard. Today's storm, however, left about 3.5-4 inches on our neighborhood.

It provided enough for a snowball fight and to make a snowman.

Tell Me If This Is Fun...

Because I think it is.

But to see for yourself, try the following simulation:

Next weekend, wake up at 5 am. At 6:30, start staring at this picture for 3 hours. Go eat breakfast. After you eat, play washers for 5 hours.

A few hours before sunset, go back to the computer and sit for a few more hours staring only this picture. At sunset, go play washers for 5 more hours.

After 5 hours of sleep, do the same thing Sunday morning. You can quit sometime around noon and take a shower.

- There's a lot about government I just don't get. While I've always been entranced with the law, I still search for reasoning behind action.

Last Saturday, I went to Wal-Mart to get my license. I learned a few days prior that I had to pass a hunter's safety course and carry proof in case we got stopped by a game warden. Since I did not have to present proof of hunter's education to obtain a license, I figured I'd get the license and then take an on-line course. Sunday, I learned that I could take the test but I'd also have to do a 4-5 hour field trip to satisfy minimal requirements, such a marksmanship. There's no way I could do that by the time we were going to Valley Mills. Friday morning, I learned that I could request a deferral and still hunt within the law. Before I did that, however, I remembered that I had taken, and passed, the test when I was fifteen years old and in Boy Scouts. I called Texas Parks & Wildlife and within five minutes, I had requisite proof that I was a responsible and safe hunter.

To bottom line the story, the State of Texas deemed that I, at the age of fifteen, was safe enough to handle a loaded weapon but not capable of driving an automobile.

Through the lifetime exemption granted after passing the course for the first time, the State of Texas further deemed that I would retain the same information for the rest of my life.

Brilliant.

[Yes, I fully understand the funding mechanism of renewal fees. But there should be more to public safety than a perpetual fiscal function.]

When Melissa verified this absurdity, we both commented our surprise that in Texas, hunter's licenses aren't distributed along with birth certificates.

- I figured out early Saturday morning that I lead a very "The Importance of Being Earnest" life.

I fully enjoy the availability of urban resources; I am completely comfortable with the ease of consumerism and the preppy lifestyle I've chosen. I am a city boy when I'm in the city.

When I'm in the country, I fully enjoy the extraction of many modern facilities; I am completely comfortable with inconvenience caused by rural isolation. I am a country boy when I'm in the country.

Actually, I'm somewhere in the middle. I enjoy wearing my boots and a Brooks Brothers shirt. I enjoy sitting around a campfire and checking e-mail, sending text messages, and checking football scores with the same wireless device.

- Most of my hobbies often require waking well before dawn. While participating in those hobbies [hiking, golf, hunting, etc.], I am more than happy to sacrifice many hours of sleep. When the alarm goes off, I don't need a snooze button to delay rising.

But ask me to wake up after sunrise and go to a place where I can earn a living to help pay for those hobbies and I am suddenly always tired and must hit the snooze button a couple of times before I can get going.

I don't get it.

Logan Elizabeth Massey: March 5, 2000 - October 31, 2007

Being that today is Dia de los Muertos, I found it quite appropriate to mention our dog.

To those who knew Logan, it was obvious she was a sickly dog; to those who didn't, even her blindness wasn't readily apparent. She was much too stubborn and proud to show her disadvantage.

We knew that we would lose her before she met normal life expectancy. There is just no way to prepare for it.

We took her to the vet two weeks ago where she was diagnosed with another ailment - kidney disease. We decided to treat it for a week before making any decision. We took her home last Saturday to see how she responded for a few days being off the IV.

Toward the end, her quality of life became the only factor. She stopped eating and drinking all together. Although she still loved to roam the back yard, she often became disoriented.

Late Tuesday night, we decided to put her to sleep. We stayed up with her for most of the night and slept in the living room to be close to her one last time. Wednesday morning, I called to make the necessary appointment and we took her to the vet one last time; when we arrived, all the receptionists fought to keep back tears as we brought her to the room.

It's an odd feeling holding a dog as it loses its life.

Even as she grew older and her chin showed a hint of grey, she was always our little puppy.

Our house is much quieter and my morning ritual has been altered. My clothes will no longer have the tell-tale signs of pet ownership and I no longer have to worry about sharing my dinner.

However, I do find a modicum of comfort knowing Logan has her vision and complete health restored to her. She's somewhere, happily playing with Zazu, Sasche, Ladybug, and the rest of the dogs that died way too young.

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• After a long and difficult week of work, I enjoy escaping from Dallas and getting away. During the summer, this is often not a problem. For the second time this month, Larry, Chris, and I have gone down to Valley Mills to prepare the property for hunting season. This means clearing back some brush, trimming trees, and mowing the field in addition to starting the corn feeders, repairing the blinds, and everything else that has to be done months in advance. Even though its a great opportunity for me to get away and recharge by doing some manual labor, I feel bad about having to leave Melissa behind to accomplish this.
• It's good to know that some things never change. We got into Valley Mills a bit late and decided to grab a burger in town before we went to the property. I don't think I even need to name the only burger joint in this small town. However, we did get there about fifteen minutes before the visiting team left town from their final scrimmage before the regular season begins. Every Friday night for the last 40 years and for the next 250, I'm sure the high school bus comes by (or will) and picks up (or will pick up) 3 or 4 dozen burgers, drinks, and gets on down the road.
  
• Coming back from Valley Mills often means bringing back some painful reminders. The cuts and bruises are expected. Two weeks ago, I brought back some chiggers; last weekend, I brought back some poison ivy. Melissa says I can't go down there any more.
  
• As the main goal was to get away for the weekend, I thought it would be a perfect time to start the Crazy Horse biography I picked up. I, like him, don't like being around crowds of people for too long a period. I prefer to call it anti-society, not anti-social. Anyway, I got to thinking that a lot of people say men become savages when left to their own devices; I respectfully disagree. I'm not sure if this is a good or bad thing, but that house on the property is as clean, if not cleaner, than our own homes. We do our own shopping and cooking, our own cleaning, our own laundry, make our own beds, vacuum, and clean the bathroom. But there's some odd force between Milford and Dallas that erases that particular skill set and we're just as clueless as when we left.

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Larry on the tractor while Steve, Melissa's uncle and godfather, watches.

Cozumel/Progreso July 28- Aug 2 2007

The only time to really dress up was at dinner. Melissa is wearing her new necklace I got in Gallup the previous week.
The Caribbean offers waters fine enough. Even though I'm a bigger fan of freshwater, we fully enjoyed ourself.

Returning from a day of snorkeling, parasailing, and some shopping.
At the Temple of the Seven Dolls in Dzibilchaltún. At the exact moment of sunrise during each equinox, the sun perfectly centers itself in the window behind us.
What else would be be doing but making fun of somebody else? Here is our interpretative dance of something long forgotten.
Luca Brasi sleeps with the fishes. Wait, that's me.

Under the sea, under the sea
Darlin' it's better down where it's wetter
Take it from me.
Up on the shore they work all day
Out in the sun they slave away
While we devoting full time to floating
Under the sea

• I enjoy meaningless repetition. As our dinner reservations were set for 8 o'clock each night, I didn't have to wonder when I would eat. As we were assigned a specific table and each family sat at the same place each night, I didn't have to wonder where I would sit. By the second night, Lim, the waiter, knew everybody's name and how many dinner rolls of each variety they preferred; Monica, my on-ship Romanian girlfriend, knew exactly what everybody wanted to drink without asking. By the third night, everything was automatic and all I had to do was worry about shoveling food in my mouth.
  


• It was my observation that cruise lines offer an array of activities to keep you busy. Since people pay for a cruise of a certain length of time, most people wanted non-stop activities from the break of dawn until sunset. Me - I just wanted to be left alone in peace and quiet. The second night, I broke my own rule and went to a social activity where I broke another cardinal rule and said hello to some guy. I paid the price the next morning on my way to breakfast when I saw him (more importantly, he saw me see him or else I would have performed an impromptu fire drill and stopped, dropped, and rolled) and I had to do a stop-and-chat. That'll teach me.
• I did have a few minutes of peace and quiet, however, when we went to a yoga lesson one of the days. I can honestly say that it was one of the most enjoyable times I've had while exercising. At the end of the lesson, I was able to touch my toes (something I haven't been able to do since high school) and my lower back was released of all tension (something that hasn't occurred since I was 15). As coincidence would have it, Chris is also giving yoga a try because some chick he met last week is a rep for a sports clothing line. I guess exercise does get everybody what they want.
  

New Mexico/Arizona - 19-23 May 2007

Much of my life is ruled by the Law of Diminishing Returns. Briefly, this economic law states that additional input toward a particular repeated action decreases the marginal yield.

As much of my life is necessarily repetitious (driving, working, eating, sleeping etc., etc.), doing more of it doesn't automatically mean I'll enjoy it more. So over the past several years, I have attempted to shift my focus to the moments that break this law.

Hiking is one of them. Besides simplifying my life, hiking is what brings everything back to base zero and re-sets the meter. When Chris first mentioned Havasu as a hiking destination, I readily agreed; after all, this is but prelude to the Outer Mountain Loop.

Since hiking in nature is automatically a pleasure, hiking companions strengthen the experience. I always enjoy hiking with my father, brother, and Brian. I haven't hiked with Dave since I was a teenager; it was my first time to hike with Jackson, Andria, and Mason.

Also for this trip, I wanted to try to bring more of my everyday life with me. I read a quote somewhere that going to the back country shouldn't be roughing it - it should be smoothing it.

I quickly learned that it is more practical in theory. While planning my food rations, I wanted to cook some simple meals that I would cook in my own kitchen.

The first meal turned out great - couscous with sun dried tomatoes and dried herbs in pita bread. It was delicious and executed to near perfection. The second meal didn't turn out all. I hiked 10 miles with 6 fresh eggs in my backpack and cooled them in the river not thirty feet from our camp site with the intention of making egg salad sandwiches in the morning. The next morning, Jackson somehow managed to break all six eggs in about 10 seconds.

What follows are pictures and quotations, with one exception, provided by Mr. John Muir, with my observations.


"Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play and pray in, where Nature may heal and cheer and give strength to body and soul alike."

The Blue Hole in Santa Rosa, NM. These are the most pristine waters I have ever visited. 81 feet deep, 61 degrees in temperature, they are also the most brisk waters I have ever visited.




"Wander here a whole summer, if you can. Thousands of God's wild blessings will search you and soak as if you were a sponge, and the big days will go by uncounted."

The Tepees Area of the Painted Desert.

"Above, the bad lands stretch on either hand. This is the region of the Painted Desert, for the marls and soft rocks of which the hills are composed are of many colors - chocolate, red, vermillion, pink, buff, and gray; and the naked hills are carved in fanstastic forms. - John Wesley Powell, The Exploration of the Colorado River and Its Canyons (1875)

The Painted Desert is a marvellously isolated and desolate area. Its beauty is underscored by the petrified remains of the forests that once anchored these lands.

The bad lands show the process of nature's change. Layers of sandstone, clay, siltstone, and hematite highlight the colorful landscape.

"No matter how far you have wandered hither to, or how many famous gorges and valleys you have seen, this one, the Grand Canyon...will seem as novel to you, as unearthly in the color and grandeur and quantity of its architecture, as if you had found it after death, on some other star; so incomparably lovely and grand and supreme is it above all the other canons in our fire molded, earthquake shaken, rain washed, wave washed, river and glacier sculptured world."

This was my first trip to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. Putting the visual perspective into words is near impossible; pictures reveal about a tenth of what the eye may capture.

"Deserts are charming to those who know how to see them."

My favorite places to hike - forests and deserts - are on opposite ends of the ecological spectrum. While the beauty of a forest is self-evident, it takes a different perspective to enjoy the beauty of a desert.

Time appears to slow down in the desert; life is more fragile and its residents are tougher.

"Every excursion I have made in all my rambling life has been fruitful and delightful from the smallest indefinite saunter an hour or two in length to the noblest summer's flight with steadyaim like a crusader bound for the Holy Land or a bird to its northern home following the flight of the seasons."

The desert goes through its own evolution. Canyons shift and rocks fall. This change disturbs shelters that took generations to form and creates new shelters for several more generations. The boulders that fall from the cliffs are not diminutive; many are the size of the kitchen in our house.

Every human, no matter what his wild disposition, would find his own way, if only he looked for it....Somewhere, if he wandered freely enough, he would enter the flow and begin to take his strength from the fountains."

Havasu Falls, 2 miles from the town of Supai, AZ and 10 miles from the trailhead. The falls drop 120 feet and create its own wind system to keep the swimming area cool on the hottest of days.

If it's love there is no inbetween

Gone fishin' - that's what the sign on my office door will read for the next three weeks.

Beginning next Wednesday, it'll be gone hikin'. It'll be a wonderful mixture of car camping and back country hiking. From Sumner Lake State Park in New Mexico to Cibola National Forest (also NM) to Havasu Falls (AZ), it'll hopefully be enough for the next several months.

However, it has got me thinking about unlimited desires, limited time, and changing interests. For the past ten years, I can't think of one Major or Ryder Cup I've missed. I'll even wake up at 5 a.m. in order to watch live action of the Open. This year, however, I won't watch any of the Thursday through Sunday action at Carnoustie so that I can go hike in the desert. Half love never appealed to me; I want all or nothing at all.

Once I get back, I'll re-pack and head out to the Western Caribbean for another five day vacation with Melissa and her mother's family to recover from this vacation.

I'll admit to a mild case of disquiet a few days before leaving on a trip like this. Going into the unknown always stirs my curious side. The only source of comfort is knowing that I better sleep well during the remaining nights I have at home; it'll be the last time to see my own bed or pillow for quite some time.

I'll also admit to over-preparing for trips; it's what I do. The funnest part, however, is the shopping as this is the only event that requires Melissa's participation. The preceding week, she'll come with me to REI and Tom Thumb to stock up on all my necessities. She always seems to find something I can't live without that I would have otherwise not picked up. Our other tradition is trying on backpacks for her. That's always good for a laugh or two.

I Hate It When I Get Bored

The past couple of weeks, I've been bored out of my mind. I've been craving change so I decided to create some.

The lawn is finally getting to where I want it. The yard, however, still needs some work. We want to eventually get rid of the three bushes to the right and put something else there. The same with the bushes behind the maple on the right. They get on my nerves. Flowers would have to do until Fall.

Friday night, we went to Lowe's and picked up all the items I would need. 2 gallons of tinted primer; 2 gallons of Valspar's Gypsy Leather flat paint; 5 dozen petunias; and two bags of mulch.
An inside joke from of Will & Grace. "I come from a broken home; now, I come from a broken gnome." We had to have this for the flower bed.
The library. I hated this room. Nothing in here matched. I hated having my back to the door when I sat at the desk. I hated all the exposed wires.
Our overflowing bookshelves. Build-ins will eventually replace this madness.
Primed and ready for paint.
Painted and reorganized (somewhat). I decided to re-categorize our books. Instead of placing them in a way that kinda made sense, I reorganized them according to Dewey Decimal classifications. The (almost) finished product. Unfortunately, the books will have to remain as they are. It's simply too much work to move them around. Next project - building bookshelves.
My back is not longer to door. I'm not sure which I hate more, however - exposed wires or going entirely wireless. Logan is still getting used to the room; she has to find a new safe place.

Pictures That Have Made Me Laugh Lately

You're never too old and it's never too cold for an Easter egg hunt.

Brooke came over for dinner the other night. While it was still cooking, she wanted a snack. She stood in front of the open fridge for about thirty seconds looking for something tasty. I finally took a picture and told her to look at the camera's screen, decide what she wanted, and then re-open the door.
Me and my dog. The other night, she crawled under the blanket and cradled her head on my shoulder. As I started to snap the picture, she woke up and gave me a big kiss on the nose.

Easter or Christmas?

As usual, the story starts off with Melissa. She, Colleen, Jenny, and Nikki spent most of the day tasting wedding cakes; I had only planned on yard work and the Masters. After yard work, however, Larry called and asked if Chris and I wanted to drive down to Valley Mills and look at the bluebonnets; the rain from several weeks ago really brought out the bloom. Besides, everybody knows the Masters doesn't start until the back nine on Sunday, anyhow.

Several years ago, Larry and his brothers bought 160 acres out by Lake Whitney. It's primarily used for hunting and to get away from the women-folk. No better reason for a road trip.

It had been a cold day in Frisco with occasional flurries but once we got to Waxahachie the snow really started to fall. For about thirty seconds, we grew concerned at being iced in; since none of us had ever seen bluebonnets and snow at the same time, we pressed on.

A few years ago, they bought an old trailer. It's comfy and a wonderful respite after coming in from the cold.

Just to the right, a dug-out 20' in diameter sets; it's used for the campfire. On November nights, it's the perfect setting for swapping stories while listening to the train and the sounds from the high school football game a few miles away.



Ol' Yeller - the work truck. Nobody knows how many miles she has on her; but she runs like a horse.

Sure enough, the entire field was covered with bluebonnets.

On the far left about 130 yard in front of the truck, just beyond the clearing, five deer (two visible in the picture) stared at us before bolting off west.

It seems these pictures should inspire some Robert Frost-like poem. Snow, a field of flowers, and a trail.

Chickasaw, Part IV

A prescribed burn.

"For when the killing fires have devoured the leaves and thin resinous bark, many of the cones, only scorched, open as soon as the smoke clears away; the hoarded store of seeds is sown broadcast on the cleared ground, and a new growth immediately springs up triumphant out of the ashes."

The ecotone (my Word of the Day on my biodegradable wilderness toilet paper) is magnificent. Forest trees surrounded by prairie grasses remind visitors of the transition from one ecology to the other.

The springs in the foothills of the Arbuckle Wilderness set a scene for the wonderful transfer.

"The plants are as busy as the animals, every cell in a swirl of enjoyment, humming like a hive, singing the old new song of creation."

Following Travertine Creek to its origin, one will find several sycamore lining the stream.

"I never saw a discontented tree. They grip the ground as though they liked it; and though fast rooted, they travel about as far as we do."

Antelope Springs, a very sacred place to the original inhabitants, the Chickasaw.

"Tracing rivers to their fountains makes the most charming of travels. As the life blood of the landscapes, the best of the wilderness comes to their banks, and not one dull passage is found in all their eventful histories."

Bear Falls.

I wondered how the name was derived as bear are not common to these Southern latitudes. But looking at this picture, the mossy land mass takes on a Bev Doolittle semblance of a thirsty bear sticking its head out of the falls to lap up the falling water.

"...ungovernable energy, rushing down smooth inclines in wide foamy sheets fold over fold, springing up here and there in magnificent whirls, scattering crisp clashing spray for the sunbeams to iris, bursting with hoarse reverberating roar through ragged gorges and boulder dams, booming in falls, gliding, glancing with cool soothing, murmuring...."

Chickasaw, Part III

I would walk 6 miles the next afternoon; I averaged about 20 minutes per mile with few rests to take pictures. About a mile in, one will come into a canyon before making an elevated climb up the other side of the hill.

"I wish I knew where I was going. Doomed to be carried of the spirit into the wilderness,' I suppose. I wish I could be more moderate in my desires, but I cannot, and so there is no rest."

Most of the walk would be a leisurely saunter.

I would see no fresh human tracks that day. The only new imprints I would encounter would be made by deer and wildcat.

"But in every walk with Nature one receives far more than he seeks."

A very nice place for lunch.

By this time, wind gusts of up to 40 mph would whip through the trees; this grove would provide a nice temporary cover.

In my day pack, I brought two ham sandwiches, chips, and a chocolate bar for dessert. I would also bring the usual trail fare - a hydration pack, jerky, dried fruit, and mixed nuts.

"We find in the fields of Nature no place that is blank or barren; every spot on land or sea is covered with harvests, and these harvests are always ripe and ready to be gathered and no toiler is ever underpaid."

Trail One is used for hikers and horses. It is wider and frequently traveled during better weather.

Trail Three, pictured above, is a bit overgrown and rougher. It would be my favorite of the two.

"The forests of America, however slighted by man, must have been a great delight to God; for they were the best He ever planted."

I know of no other way to better spend an evening - weary legs, a peaceful mind, being comforted by the fire and looking back on the day's events.

"Around your camp fire the flowers seem to be looking eagerly at the light, and the crystals shine unweariedly, making fine company as you lie at rest in the very heart of the vast, serene, majestic night."