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<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nBefore they did the \u201cWash Improvement\u201d we never had dump trucks, bulldozers, bucket diggers, or any of that stuff up here. Now it\u2019s a yearly event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I miss the silence of the forest, I miss seeing all the wildlife that we used to see in this canyon before the \u201cwash Improvement project\u201d destroyed the water source, habitat, and local environment. The construction sounds alone seem to drive away some animals. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It might have something to do with the time of year the construction starts. I miss having owls nesting near my house. Their hooting in the night was comforting. The red tail hawks moved much higher into the mountains. I\u2019ll still see them soaring on thermals. Sometimes I\u2019ll hear one snatching a small rabbit up out on some nearby open flats. I used to see them hunting all the time. They make spectacular dives, falling like a stone, flaring their wings out at the last possible moment claws extending, then bam! Their prey seems to just vanish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even the coyotes have left the canyon. It\u2019s been years since I\u2019ve seen a bear. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Maybe the trash company is right, there\u2019s no need for the security of bear proof trashcans. The habitat has been sufficiently destroyed that humans don\u2019t encounter their distant cousins anymore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I want to be clear. This is not about climate change. This is about a man made environmental disaster committed in the name of flood control. This is about an environmental study that was incomplete at best, or the county purchased a \u201cRubber Stamp\u201d at worst. There is still water in the wash. It\u2019s just not accessible most of the time. This is due to the widening and flattening of the wash. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Before improvement, there was a stream about two feet wide and 2 to 3 inches deep most of the year, it only dried up in late Summer. This stream was fed from further up the mountainside. Up in the heights there are collecting pools that rainfall and snow melt keep full most of the year. Water from these collecting pools made its way down the wash splashing over rocks and down small waterfalls churning and bubbling until it made it to my level. The flowing water was cold, and clear. It provided life to all manner of critter that lived in the forest. You name any animal native to this region and we had it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Walking along the rim of the wash in the early morning or evening you\u2019d see deer, raccoons, sometimes bear, bobcat, cougar, and a variety of birds. It was possible to observe the phenomena of \u201cPeace at the watering hole\u201d. All the animals needed water so it was rare to see any hunting at the water\u2019s edge. 50 yards from the water source all bets were off!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The \u201cimprovement\u201d widened and flattened the bottom of the wash. The water still flows from the collecting pools as it always has. The collecting pools are beyond the reach of the county because they exist on National Forest Land therefore they haven\u2019t been \u201cimproved\u201d. The water flows down the natural creek bed to the place where the county \u201cimproved\u201d things, when it hits the wide flat areas, it spreads out and soaks into the soil. Much of the water evaporates and for most of the year the bottom of the wash is a mud flat, instead of a place with abundant wildlife. Insects and small mammals can capitalize on what water is present, but animals larger than rodents can\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Man, once again makes a desert and calls it good. <\/p>\n\n\n
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<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nLately we\u2019ve had a new \u201cwake up\u201d feature. There\u2019s someone up the road who may be into those stupid wanna-be drift cars. Their only claim to being a \u201cdrift car\u201d is a straight exhaust which is unbearably loud when the vehicle is going up a 15-20\u00b0 incline anytime of day. It does seem especially loud at midnight though. Unfortunately, where there\u2019s one wanna-be \u201cdrift car\u201d others soon follow. Now there\u2019s that noise several times in the evening and often right up to about 2 am. I don\u2019t know what the hell they\u2019re doing but the same cars drive up and down the street multiple times every night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One car in particular leaves every weekday morning at about 7:30am. It\u2019s annoying but I\u2019m already up by then. I\u2019d be up by then because my alarm is set for 7:15am. Not that I ever get to hear that waking me up if I\u2019m home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I was pleasantly surprised to discover that my alarm did in fact wake me. I made this discovery while I was on a cross country trip last year. I was staying in hotels and found that they were quieter than my home. Isn\u2019t that a kick in the pants?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These are some of the things that go through my mind when I consider moving. The noise alone is reason enough for me to leave. But that begs the question where do I go?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Pulling up stakes is one thing, the question is, \u201cwhere do you go that would be different?\u201d I don\u2019t want to trade one set of annoying issues for another set of super annoying issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019m pretty sure I know what I don\u2019t want, I don\u2019t know exactly what I do<\/strong> want yet. Come Winter, I\u2019ll have the house closed and the noise won\u2019t be such a big deal. Maybe then I\u2019ll have more restful nights sleep and sleep until my alarm wakes me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Perhaps with more restful sleep will come answers to questions about where I go from here.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Lately though that has not been the case. It\u2019s a function of it being Summer and me leaving the windows open for the evening breezes. I fall asleep listening to the crickets and wind in the trees. I might wake up if the dog shifts position, or jumps back up on the bed after getting … <\/p>\n