Will be gone all day today

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Figured that I better get a blog entry prepped.

I’m going to visit a friend. I SOOO need to get away if only for a few hours.

I’m dealing with a bit of cabin fever. With the price of gas as high as it is, I’ve not been going too many places. I’ve certainly not been spending any gas that I didn’t need to.

On the one hand, I’ve been saving money. On the other hand… I’m going stir crazy in isolation.

The subtle signs are that when I actually do go somewhere I’m grinning the whole way there and back. It doesn’ matter if I’ve got the top of the car up or down, It’s freedom! It’s a new view and I’m stimulated by it. Another sign is that I’ve bought some music that would make great driving / traveling music.

The Chromatics is the latest acquisition. Yeah… gotta drive playing their music.

I’ve packed my camera, and a few other items in case I see something that’s photo-worthy.

Changed a bunch of Lightbulbs yesterday to the new LED lights. In the process I busted an insert in the fixture. I’m taking that along with me in case I see a Home Depot or Lowes and feel like stopping.

The problem is cabin fever is that to a point you’re productive and take care of little projects. But beyond that point you slip down the slope to depression and you just don’t give a damn about much of anything. The shit will STILL be there tomorrow and if it’s gets moved today, tomorrow, or next week it really doesn’t matter.

The problem is that feeling like that feeds further depression and then it starts coloring all kinds of things in your life. Within a short time the cycle is feeding on itself and growing worse.

Today is going to be a mental health day. New view, good conversation, & probably a good drink or two. I think it will be good to talk with my friend I’ve gotten the impression that he’s in a similar headspace. If true then we may be able to help each other out and give each other direction as only interaction with someone you know well can.

 

I woke up wet…

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No! Nothing like Homer Simpsons recent urinary problems due to guilt.

I’ve picked up another nasty cold. This is the second one in 8 weeks. On the up side… Supposedly you can only catch 600 colds in your life so I guess I’ve only got 598 to go. On the down side I’M Fucking miserable and easily go from mostly OK to being a bastard in a matter of minutes.

This one started on Friday morning as a slight tickle in the back of my throat. Within hours it was a constant burning then came the coughing and sniffles.

A particularly fun torture of this cold is that if I”m sitting or standing I’m coughing violently. If I’m laying down I’m not coughing but I can’t breath because my sinuses wad up.

To add a special Joy it’s been snowing which means that I’ve been outside clearing decks, stairs & such.

So when I woke up this morning soaking wet I was CRANKY!

Obviously I’d been running a fever and it must have broken. There is nothing quite so disconcerting as rolling over and having a soggy wet spot that starts at the back of your neck and goes down your spine to your ass.

There are other “wet spots” that all men have encountered. Usually we try to make our partner sleep in THOSE. There’s a BIG difference between the two. How the wet spot came to be is usually a lot more enjoyable for instance.

The bedding will be in the wash for another hour or so. Then perhaps I’ll crawl back into bed and sleep the rest of this crappy cold off.

I did get to watch the sun come up. That was neat.

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Been following the Hubub over the “Marine Kiss”

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I think it’s freaking neat!

By now most everyone has seen the photos of the Marine arriving home from Camp Leatherneck and kissing his boyfriend. For those of you that haven’t seen what all the hubub is about I’m including the

That the photos went viral is surprising but then again it’s “new” in the public eye.

I’ve been cruising through the various blogs and news reports and smiling that the majority of comments are pretty positive. After all who wouldn’t want to be greeted with passion, love, and joy by their loved one after 6 months apart?

The negative comments are surprisingly venomous but thankfully few.

What is astounding is that some people have a tough time differentiating between religious dogma and the law.

In a few instances I’ve been unable to keep my mouth shut and have added to the comment stream.

One of my comments is as follows.

To those of you who’ve described this homecoming as “nauseating, sick, degrading, they should be arrested, he should be thrown out of the Marines” etc.

You do realize you’re essentially coming down on the side of oppression don’t you?

Why would you deny two consenting adults their personal “pursuit of life, liberty, and happiness” as described in the Declaration of Independence?

Have these two adults done anything to deny you your own pursuit of the same? I think not. One of them is willingly and actively working to protect those very rights for you.

Perhaps you should think about that before you seek to deny freedoms from your fellow citizens.

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Here is a link to one of the news reports from The Miami Herald. This one has an active comments thread, I’ve been checking on during the day.

Joe My god has a similar story. As does Rex Wockner.

I’m sure that in a fairly short time this will be as commonplace as any other homecoming scene.

For the moment… It’s generating a heck of a media tempest.

To Dalan Wells and Brandon Morgan, if they ever stumble upon my little patch of the web…

Well Done guys. Welcome home Brandon. I hope you both have all the happiness you deserve.

Thank you Brandon for defending me and thank you Dalan for giving Brandon the homecoming he deserved.

Now both of you… GO PLAY!

 

 

Valentines Day

Happy Valentines day.

I have a cold.

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It started out as nothing but a minor tickle. So minor, that I ignored it. Then during the night Sunday it developed into a full blown sore throat, fever, sneezing, coughing, PAIN in the ass!

Women say men are whiny and hard to deal with. We’re actually pretty easy to deal with. LEAVE US ALONE…

I’m like most men when I’m sick.

I don’t want to take a shower, I don’t care if I stink, I don’t want to look pretty, and I don’t want to put clothes on.

We revert to our primitive state. It’s actually for everyone else’s protection. If someone can tell we’re sick from 100 feet away they know two things.

1 We’re infectious, the rest of the tribe should stay away.

2 We’re probably really bad tempered and unless you want a stone ax in your head… Probably best you stay away.

We’ll eat when we’re hungry, we’ll forage in the food stores and cholesterol BE DAMNED! We’ll sleep, watch TV, we’ll jerk off cause we want to feel better if only for a few minutes and we’ll pull out the whiskey, scotch, or whatever because that gives us a burn in our throat that’s way better than Nyquil.

In my case the dogs are on guard protecting me. It’s kind of nice & I sleep soundly when they’re on guard. These guys don’t bark unless there’s something they’re worried about. For the most part they’re content to sniff me occasionally, (Checking to see if I’m dead, I sure smell dead.) then back to the foot of the bed watching the door.

This Valentines day… all bets are off, I’m not going anywhere, doing anything, or engaging in a Hallmark Holiday. I’m in bed, in a cave with the flickering garish light of a TV, the only source of illumination. I’m cranky and I’m going to stay right here until either I can’t stand my own stink or I get well whichever comes first.

if you want to see the “nice” me… The first appointment is two weeks from next Monday… I’ll see you then!

 

Hiking

Here is a picture of one of the places that I’ve been hiking lately.
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As you can see it gets a lot more rugged the higher up you go. This is at about 6750 FT above sea level. It’s also less than a mile from my house.

Whats interesting is that even though I live here in the mountains I’m supposed to pay for something called an Adventure Pass from the Forestry Service.

Sorry guys, not happening. I park my car at my own house, I leave no traces, no trash or whatever. I pack out whatever I carry in. So I’m not paying…

I’m planning to head further up this area.

Obviously I’ll wait until there is no snow and it hasn’t rained in a long time. This is a wash, and all those rocks and trees you see strewn about? Well that stuff is there because of lots of water rushing down this wash. It would be very bad to get caught in a flash flood here while I was hiking.

The Top of the peak is something like 8 thousand feet up. It’s a personal goal for me to get to the top

According to the topographical map, the  the Pacific Crest Trail is just over the ridge. As I understand it, this section of the trail is called Blue ridge Truck Trail. I’d like to walk the trail for at least a short distance.

The dogs seem to enjoy going with me. It’s good for all of us because we’re getting our cardio workouts in.
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They may not appreciate the cardio but they love getting to sniff all over the trail.

I’m appreciating the muscle tone and shrinking belly.

Before you decide to strike out and hike to the top of your nearest mountain…

Consider that you’re combating not only the slope but you’re also having to consider the altitude.

If you’re not used to it being above 6000 ft can cause shortness of breath. So work up to it, make sure that you’re not likely to have a heart attack and then begin training.

Have a blast…