… Because someone has to say it.

(See the new drop-box for features and trades below and to the left. Yes! They do exist.)

Hello from the land of retail! That magical place where dreams come true and the populace answers the call to spend spend spend! Yes, it’s the most wonderful time… sing it with me now… to drink beer… Where blow hards are blowing and rudeness is showing, stick it in your earrrrrrrr… It’s the most wonderful time, to drink beer!

Okay, so all kidding aside, those who know me know it’s the season where I disappear for a little while. There are just too many things to get done in too little hours that writing suffers, along with my mood and wallet. Having Wolfshine this year helps immensely, and it doesn’t hurt that I want to spread the good cheer with her too. The one thing to keep in mind in retail is that come January third it will all be over for another year.

For those wondering, we made it through Black Friday pretty easily, even though this year I had to be one of those on the sales floor at four in the morning. (No, the world did not end.) But let me be the first to tell you, I stand by my opinion that there is nothing in this world important enough to require pants before eleven in the morning. Nothing. Count on it.

Thanksgiving was a wonderful affair spent in the company of Wolfshine’s family. We ate, and ate well. Speaking of eating well, I baked my first pie ever, a buttermilk one, last weekend, and it was so well received by my love that she nominated me the official pie baker of the household. I’ll be trying my luck in the next two weeks by attempting to bake more. Such good stuff, and for those who have never heard of it, look it up. Buttermilk pie uses a cup of buttermilk, but it also uses a cup and a half of sugar. Sweetness overload, but so worth the diabetic coma. I have witnesses!

In further news from the land of retail, Walmart corporate is determined that we should meet our projected goals in sales numbers for the season. Because our competitors decided to remain open until eight pm on Christmas Eve this year, all of our company stores are following suit - and right now the push is on to get enough volunteers to stay till nine pmish, since the schedules for that week were already made before that decision to extend the hours was made. Yeah Bentonville… good luck with that.

Let me just say this: I would believe that most of America would like to be home with their families on Christmas Eve. The one day and a half that Walmart associates are guaranteed off a year being in jeopardy not withstanding, I can speak from experience knowing I’d like to be home too. Since I’m pretty sure Bentonville would like me fired for saying any of this, you didn’t hear it from me. But I would encourage all Americans to get home by 5 pm on Christmas Eve and stay there. Let these big chain stores understand by not showing up that it doesn’t pay to shackle their associates inside on such traditional days, and nip this kind of behavior in the bud. (Or we’ll be open on Christmas Day in two years, and if you think we’re snarly now… well, there is nothing you need so last minute that won’t be there in the stores on the day after, I promise.)

Finally, I’ll leave you with an amusing little story, also from the land of retail.

Having gotten off of work with my Wolfshine in tow late one recent night, we went off for our weekly grocery shopping plus our Christmas extras… Over two hundred dollars spent and simply the most I’ve ever spent in Walmart at one time. Having worked the whole day, and then shopped for over an hour, I was in no mood to spend a lengthy time at the checkout counter (one of three open at the hour) and we loaded up the belt behind a sweet little old lady in a mart-cart and a nice young gentleman with two bottles of wine.

Much to my annoyance I learned that said sweet little old lady was not entirely with it, for her reaction to being rung up for 25$ worth of purchases was a little like the kind of sticker shock one gets when looking at a new BMW. First it appeared she’d lost her wallet, then her checkbook, then checkbook was found, then cash was found and exchanged (15$ short) and the cash was re-exchanged. After a long and confused discourse between customer and cashier over the non-necessity of filling out the whole check, the whole check was in fact filled out and handed over, with the poor cashier staring at the document in question the way a bank official reads a draft request from a body in Kenya.

Finally the check was pushed protesting into the reader at the register, which then went into apoplexy and demanded an appropriate form of ID. ID not being a recognized term of usage in this little old lady’s world, she proceeded to rifle through her purse and offer up several questionable pieces of plastic, including but not limited to a Sears card, a bingo ticket, and a Sam’s Club card ("It's got my picture on it"), but alas, nothing the cashier, the management (by this time involved) or the government recognizes to be a valid form of ID.

By this time I was rather badly aggravated and had several suggestions as to what the little old lady could do with the various pieces of plastic she was trying to unsuccessfully pass off as proper identification. I was kind enough to send the man with the bottles of wine to the next open cashier, but with all of our items down the belt there was no way Wolfshine and I were going anywhere. Being a semi-polite sort of individual wishing to keep my job at the establishment, I gritted my teeth and continued to watch what unfolded.

Again it was brought up that there was cash to be had, and this time it was management’s turn to find out that the cash available was in fact fifteen dollars short. “Well, is there something we can put back this time?” they asked. And the flustered little old lady sat and fidgeted and fussed and finally declared that she didn’t need anything but the package of batteries. As the manager started to go through the bag of purchases it was explained by both customer and cashier that she had in fact brought a few items into the store with her, and that those items should be left in the shopping bag.

All items returned, the cashier took the batteries to ring them up, and discovered that the package had been opened, and that several batteries were missing. Upon being informed of this information, the manager bent down to the poor little old lady, and asked her if she was aware of this. To which the poor little old lady replied, “Yes, the nice man in the back of the store took the batteries out and put them in my monkey.”

I will say to their credit that both cashier and manager managed to take this information in stride, both apparently having seen said stuffed electronic toy in the grocery sack. Both smiled and finished the business at hand. I however, not having this information, turned to Wolfshine and doubled over the basket, chewing my laughter back so hard that the "Part in my hair turned red” according to my beloved, who was smiling as much as the manager.

Grateful not to have lost my temper earlier, I felt I’d been rewarded for my patience with the best laugh I’d had in weeks. And this kind of thing happens to our cashiers all the time…

Next time you’re in Walmart, try playing Bingo: [link] . Realize we’ve already got you beaten, several times over. And have a happy holiday season. I’m sure you’ll agree that we all deserve it, each and every one.

k

~~~~~

Webcam Picture taken from internet.

*****
So - I’ll continue to continue - to pretend
My life - will never end
And flowers - never bend
With the rainfall

~ Flowers Never Bend With the Rainfall - Simon and Garfunkle ~

"The difference between fiction and reality? Fiction has to make sense." Tom Clancy

"So you want to know the best way to address a dragon do you? Well, keep this at hand. Pencil and paper. You thought I was going to say "wit and wisdom" or such no? But you're wrong. For when dealing with dragons, if you're face to face with one, then you've already left wit and wisdom far behind you." ~ Taleron Kindrake

~

… What have you read that inspired or changed your life/POV?

(See the new drop-box for features and trades below and to the left. Yes! They do exist.)

I picked this up over at ’s journal and decided that story tellers should have some sort of list like this. It just seems as though it ought to be part of the trade. To that end, here are the fifteen books that I remember as providing pivotal moments in my life and philosophical bent.

15 - 1491 New revelations of the Americas before Columbus - Charles C. Mann

As far as things go, I could have chosen any of the books I’ve recently read in the historical vein for the last position. I took this one simply for how it made me look at the things I thought I already knew.

14 - Mornings on Horseback - David McCullough

Include “John Adams” in this title. David is a wonderful historian who makes his chosen subjects come alive in a way I’ve never encountered before. Because of the last twelve years of politics, I’ve been increasingly disillusioned with the process and where our country is going. “Mornings on Horseback” has helped me to realize we haven’t really gone anywhere at all. Between this look at pre-presidential Teddy Roosevelt and the life of John Adams, I’ve run across some of my favorite political quotes.

13 - 1421 - The Year That China Discovered America - Gavin Menzies

In the world of historical what ifs, some stand out more than others. If religion is a matter of faith, I find science a similar matter, and what I choose to believe is what makes the most sense to me. 1421 is another eye opener, a fantastic journey into other civilizations and what they might have accomplished.

12 - Chobits - Clamp

Why this graphic novel/Anime? Why not? This beautiful story by a Japanese team of four women story writer artists got me back into the medium of Anime, a heavy influence on my current work.

11 - ElfQuest - Wendy and Richard Pini

As Chobits bumped my current stage of writing deeper into the visual mode, ElfQuest did the same to me many years ago. What Wendy was doing showed me many things about creating one’s own works - and about how others will respond to sharing your dreams. ElfQuest was the comic that first showed me that comic books are not necessarily for kids, and that was a powerful revelation.


10,9 - Watership Down, Traveller - Richard Adams

Both of these anthromorphic stories are some of my first recognized ones - rather, they were some of the first books I read at an age where I wasn’t just looking at the funny animal people. Along with Plague Dogs, Adams gave me serious stories - both totally fictional, and historical, where it was the animals that were the heroes, and the story tellers, and that was an influence I cannot deny. Adams and CJ Cherryh are writers that I want to write like.

8 - Shadowrun - FASA

An earlier influence on my writing is the Shadowrun series - a setting of high fantasy and high technology, mixed together seamlessly with a background taken from events that were current in the late Eighties. Written by different writers, it was a then to me unique approach to the tired formulas of science fiction and fantasy. It was fresh, new, and made a complete world that I could relate to - and it gave me the basic framework that I apply all my writing to. It isn’t about only what is possible, but also what is plausible, and I think I’m a better writer for it.

7 - Dragons of Pern - Anne McCaffrey

In an early world where the dragon was the enemy, the beast, McCaffrey’s works were an affirmation of one of my two spirit totems. They were one of the first three works of high fantasy that I had ever read, and gave to dragons a positive light that I have never forgotten. Again here was a world with people and things that I could see in the mind’s eye without trouble. Again, here is an influence that I want to mimic. I want to write books loved like McCaffrey’s.

6 - Dragon's Dawn - Anne McCaffrey

While Pern occupies a space on my list by itself, the Dragon's Dawn book takes a space higher because it moved me more than any other in the series. Not only did Dragon's Dawn get me to collect books that I had read and wanted to keep, it also taught me to look closer at the stories I wanted to tell. I now know that no matter where in a story I start, there is a dynamic to the world I’m writing in; that the past, present, and future all have an impact on what I’m writing about now. (Not to mention there’s a story in someone’s ancestors that deserves to be told.)

5 Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien

My first high fantasy book - and ever after I was a reader, diving into fantasy over anything else one could buy. (Actually, the hobbit as a prequel holds that honor, but LotR made me want to learn more big words, to understand more adult plots and those big things in life I had yet to experience for myself.)

4 Bhagavata Purana

If the family I once worked for knew how much influence they had on my life to this day they’d probably be surprised. But while I was searching through faith and philosophy in my youth I met these people who were Krishnan - yes, they of the shaven heads and flowers in the airport. Except they weren’t like that - they were in all respects a healthy American family - vegetarian, but happy and really living together.

They shared their religion and philosophy with me because I was honestly interested and asked questions they could answer. One thing they allowed me to do was to pick up their bible - the Bhagavata Purana. It gave me a glimpse into someone else’s culture, and how every look at the idea of God leads to a same basic set of ideas that form the framework of positive religion. That chant that they are so put down for, means many things, but one thing above all has stood with me since that time. And that is “God is God”. To me, it was a truth I could understand.

3 The Wiccan Mysteries - Raven Grimassi

While I have decided I am Pagan, thanks to soul searching, historical musing and those in my learning circle over time, I cannot point to any one pagan school of worship and say, “that’s what I am.” To that end, Grimassi’s book brought me to the decision that I am not Wiccan. I wear the pentagram, I believe in the tenants, but I don’t care for the idea of magic and spells. It was the Mysteries where I first began to realize; the view out my window is more than enough a miracle for me.

2 Holy Blood Holy Grail - M Baigent +

In the same vein as that above, this inspiration for the Da Vinci Code fascinated me for many reasons, the first of them because it seemed as if the trio of authors were speaking directly to me. I have always wondered about different Christian ideas - where they originated, how they are influenced and influence in return. Beyond any other “what if” this book gave me directions and ideas that collaborate with everything else I’ve ever thought about the great religions. The questions I’ve been asking, were not necessarily answered with Holy Blood, but it has helped me immensely to know that others have asked and studied these same questions with a serious mindset, and found plausible answers that are not simply “that’s the way it is”. And none of these answers have made the importance of Christ and God any less important to me.

1 Black Sun Rising - CS Friedman

After the eclectic mish mash above, it might not surprise one that the book I feel has changed my life the most is another work of science fiction/fantasy. But since my introduction to CS Friedman when I was but a young teen, I have been repeatedly introduced to the idea that “sacrifice” is not the terrible notion that fiction oft makes it out to be. The idea of “sacrifice” is not a bloodthirsty rite to gain power over souls, but an actual philosophy with real meaning and sense. It is not only blood that can be sacrificed, but money, time, goods and items, and the importance of these sacrifices that you make in your life is not what others get out of your sacrifice, but of what you get in return.

The power you receive, is related to the importance of what you give up. Is it ten minutes of your time a day? Is it ten dollars a week? These things do not give as much return as real commitments, such as the vices we give up to become healthier, or the changes in thought we make to learn to be better people, be it in tolerance of others, understanding, or simply happier individuals. While negative sacrifices offer results as much as positive sacrifices, the returns are negative as well. Learning this lesson has been time well spent for me. (And honestly, the lesson is still being learnt.)

When I listen to my Fiancé talk about “the Secret”, and others speak about the sacrifice of Christ for my sins, I smile to believe I already know about the truth of these things. Positive thought leads to positive reaction - Negative thought leads to negative reaction. We have the power to make things better, to walk and work in the moulds of our heroes and saints. Every text on religion that I’ve ever studied suggests such a thing - that the golden rule and the power of karma are truths in our human universe. And having heard and read of it all my life, I honestly believe.

It was “Black Sun Rising” that made me look deep into it, my own philosophy and beliefs. Without the prelude, I might never have explored the key plank in my own spirituality that I remember and cherish to this day. When the anti-hero has murdered his children on the altar, when he is about to sacrifice his wife upon the same table, he tells her, “This sacrifice I make is not of your body. It is of my humanity.”

Those words struck a powerful chord in me. I spent a long time exploring why.

With all of that said, I add the point that I am still reading. My current selection of books are about the effects of Islam upon the founding of Europe, The Prydain Chronicles which I have been reading aloud to Wolfshine, and a few others I pick up with less frequency. There are books today and there will be books tomorrow. My list will likely change.

What about your list? I ask you, to give it a little thought, and maybe share with DA. A good book is a good blessing. A room without books is like a body without a soul.

k

~~~~~

Webcam Picture taken from internet.

*****
So - I’ll continue to continue - to pretend
My life - will never end
And flowers - never bend
With the rainfall

~ Flowers Never Bend With the Rainfall - Simon and Garfunkle ~

"The difference between fiction and reality? Fiction has to make sense." Tom Clancy

"So you want to know the best way to address a dragon do you? Well, keep this at hand. Pencil and paper. You thought I was going to say "wit and wisdom" or such no? But you're wrong. For when dealing with dragons, if you're face to face with one, then you've already left wit and wisdom far behind you." ~ Taleron Kindrake

~

Just how much information do we need to pack into these things anyway?
(See the new drop-box for features and trades below and to the left. Yes! They do exist.)

So I thought I would make a short entry to re-notify folks that the draft for the second book of the Techno series is done and posted. I can’t really decide if I want to rework the posted version of the two books because some things have been edited and can only come out better. (Janus/Shrike anybody?) But really, with the ever-present roster of deviations I’ve got to look through and feel the urge to comment upon, I know better than to promise that’s going to be done. It seems that DA continually has some bugs and issues that don’t make it easy on us writers, and, well duh, it IS an art site after all.

I don’t have any urge to go anywhere else though… I mean I would miss out on so much that comes across these pages. And no better than I keep track of web things, what with my WoW addiction, it seems silly to invest the time into yet another web page. So you can expect me to stick around here for a while to come.

I won’t bore you with the whine about the lack of comments on the close of Techno. It’s a busy time of year and though I might be the center of the universe I live in, I can’t expect to be the center of anyone else’s. It’s a pretty sure bet I’m living the classic example of giving to get, and being so behind in giving, well, you get the picture. And so if I haven’t said anything about your latest endeavors, don’t worry. I’ll be there eventually.

Techno 3 has gotten off to a start, and I plan to have it up today if possible. I’ve so much work to do around the house it’s not really funny, but I’ve been considering the merits of putting in more of it… a day around the house taken from the work week wouldn’t be worth the effort if I didn’t use it for something… and until I can say I’m making good use of my weekend, why on earth should I have an extra day? At least I still don’t mind doing the dishes and laundry, all because of Her.

Her. We aren’t married yet, and I haven’t quite yet agreed to a date. I would like to say we’re ready to set one, but the truth is I’m not ready to set one. I want to be more stable first, more secure, more… well, I want our minds made up about more details. lol. And I guess that’s my fault too, because I have yet to really think on all of them. How does a guy plan for a wedding anyway? Maybe I’ve just found the material for a new poll.

With all that said, is there anything you readers would like to know about? Ask away!

k

~~~~~

See that picture over there in my webcam space? I didn't draw it! If it's yours, and you want me to take it down, I will gladly do so, with proof of ownership and a polite request. (Signature in your gallery will do.)

*****
So - I’ll continue to continue - to pretend
My life - will never end
And flowers - never bend
With the rainfall

~ Flowers Never Bend With the Rainfall - Simon and Garfunkle ~

"The difference between fiction and reality? Fiction has to make sense." Tom Clancy

"So you want to know the best way to address a dragon do you? Well, keep this at hand. Pencil and paper. You thought I was going to say "wit and wisdom" or such no? But you're wrong. For when dealing with dragons, if you're face to face with one, then you've already left wit and wisdom far behind you." ~ Taleron Kindrake

~

Literature from Ladydove7-story

One problem with storywriters is that they are too often busy writing stories to really read and comment on the works of others. It’s a specific problem at DA because in everyone’s busy lives an art site provides us with the time to look at a picture for a few minutes and come away satisfied - leave a comment and go on to the next, ready to take off when time for being a gallery spectator is over.

So when I ran across a call for a feature trade from one of the artist/writers I watch, I thought to myself “why not?” I normally have quite a time giving equal attention to anyone here, simply because my busy days keep me scattered with work and recreation - I don’t feel it fair to constantly ask for crits and views without making some effort to do the same. You must remember (especially our writers) that in DA, you do get more the more that you give. To that end, please give a look at Ladydove’s work if you have the time.

AC Enclave

A.S. asked for three favorites and while winding my way through her gallery I was able to narrow things down to four. This young woman has written on a variety of subjects, including works of short fiction, fan fiction, original novels, poetry and short essays on non-fictional subjects. She is not only a talented writer but a talented artist as well, and often self-illustrates her work.

This favorite is a fan-fiction work, according to her authors comments, but the world isn’t anything I myself know about. Suffice to say, this entry into a detective’s investigation of the modern day Atlanta Rave scene would make a great script for the variety of CSI shows out today. Without going deep into the realm of modernized gothic fantasy, A.S. still managed to keep me on the edge of my seat until the moment her literary fingers scraped down the chalkboard. Seeing this piece rewritten has only made it better, and still it made me curious enough about the original writer’s world to go and have a look.

The Pharoahs Wake

A.S. took a good look at the modern and ancient world’s intersection with this short piece about a modern day mummy. Not sure what to expect when the piece opened with first person musing, I raced through the little tale pleasantly sympathetic with the most unlikely of protagonists. It is indeed something to think on.

Hidden Wounds

This was the first thing I recall reading from LadyDove’s accounts, and while the original was the first thing I thought to feature from memory, the rewrite makes the story all the more captivating to me. One of life’s little theological mysteries is inspected from the viewpoint of the young woman going through it, and I can honestly say the character of Angelina felt very real to me. I rate this one excellent story telling, and it was very hard to choose between it and the following favorite -


Fields of Grass

If you’ve ever seen “Batteries Not Included” you’ll probably remember the masterful performance of Jessica Tandy, who may not have been scripted to have Alzheimer’s, but surely reminds me of laboring through life with the disease.

In “Fields of Grass”, there aren’t any such miracles as in the movie, but I cannot imagine a more telling look inside the mind of an Alzheimer’s patient. Having had the recent chance to have a second go at the book “flowers for Algernon”, I also recognize the excellent first person perspective of the story, and simply can’t imagine anyone not feeling an extreme sorrow for the main character, or indeed for the supporting cast.

A.S. has written several touching pieces in her time, but to me, Fields of Grass is the best.

This list isn’t to say that many of her other works aren’t worth a similar read through. For those that like the Vampire Masquerade tales, her “Hear the Ravens Cry” is an excellent taste of the nightlife, the turning of Zane a wicked look into what it means to lose your humanity. And A.S.’s artistic talents get a good work out in the retelling of Rapunzel starting here: [link]

In short, Ladydove7-story is only half of an artistic equation worth a look. Like any aspiring author closer to following life’s work rather than mere hobby writing, her pieces here can leave one unfulfilled, yearning for more chapters and grand conclusions, which is why I chose to feature and favorite her short stories above her other work. But all of her submissions are unique gems in various stages of polish, equally deserving of your time.

k

~~~~~

See that picture over there in my webcam space? I didn't draw it! If it's yours, and you want me to take it down, I will gladly do so, with proof of ownership and a polite request. (Signature in your gallery will do.)

*****
So - I’ll continue to continue - to pretend
My life - will never end
And flowers - never bend
With the rainfall

~ Flowers Never Bend With the Rainfall - Simon and Garfunkle ~

"The difference between fiction and reality? Fiction has to make sense." Tom Clancy

"So you want to know the best way to address a dragon do you? Well, keep this at hand. Pencil and paper. You thought I was going to say "wit and wisdom" or such no? But you're wrong. For when dealing with dragons, if you're face to face with one, then you've already left wit and wisdom far behind you." ~ Taleron Kindrake

~

... The rest of the story.

You already know how I went to Washington State to witness my mother’s marriage to Leroy Johnston, a dairy farmer we’ve known for some thirty years. Wolfshine and I were invited to the event and we spent an enjoyable week away from Walmart, keeping each other company. Mom and Leroy had planned to take us to a few places we’d wanted to see, and Mom had us out walking the trails around the farm and neighboring properties just to soak up the atmosphere.

One of the places we’d wanted to go was Mt. Saint Helens. The drive there, up through the Gifford Pinchot National Forest, was an education in itself. I want to say that Weyhauser Lumber company grows lodge pole pines in great swaths of land for eventual harvesting; the only thing comparable that I’ve ever seen was along the interstates in Alabama and Georgia, where a similar logging company grows fast growing yellow pine for clear cut harvesting.

Weyhauser lots are everywhere out there, and you can see the land in various stages of growth, regrowth and management. When they clear cut a lot in the hundreds if not thousands of acres, they always leave a small section in the middle of the lot, letting the trees there grow up even taller. This we were told is for the Spotted Owl. The various lots are all different sizes, depending upon when they were seeded. Each lot has a sign telling what year the trees were planted, and the oldest we saw was a year before I was born. Tall trees! Unfortunately the only camera we had that day was my instant throwaway, so we didn’t get much in the way of pictures.

Driving along in the mountains heading for St. Helens, you pass these lots, one after another, climbing some 2000 feet in elevation in an hour’s drive. And then all at once you cross a bridge with a sign saying “Here marks the edge of the lateral blast zone.” The mountain has been giving you sneak peaks of it’s truncated top through much of the drive - but at that point she’s nowhere to be seen. The ridges hide her, she’s over ten miles away. But the trees are nowhere to be seen… not necessarily true, because there are trees, all less than ten feet tall. Weyhauser came in after the eruption and cut the dead timber, which that far out was still standing, but had been killed off by hot gas and ashfall. Since the 1980’s, what has grown is still in the shrubbery stage, pines still pushing upward as smaller growth reclaims the land.

The uphill drive twists and turns through the river valleys - the scenery is fantastic, full of life and the traces of upheaval. You’re encouraged to stay on the road, visit the observatory stations, and visit the monument building. I recognized the names of places we passed, many renamed for people that had died in the eruption, including the last stop, the Johnston observatory, with staffed museum and viewing platforms. St. Helens is five miles from the end of the road, and nature is nowhere near finished reclaiming the land it stripped bare in 81. And again, just to prove we really were there :

Making a visit out to Washington makes it easy to see why it’s one of our primary areas for tree grown produce. Plant life there enjoys the volcanic soil very much. It’s been commented upon several times across my pages already, how surprised everyone is to find out just how fast the trees grow. Most of the dairy farm was logged off during the early 1900’s, and Leroy told us of an interesting practice. Loggers would cut down a large pine or fir, and then plant a seedling in a crack atop the stump. As the new tree grew, the old stump would rot away, leaving the new tree with a kind of cavity or hole at the base. Mom sent me some pictures of these - where the cavities are big enough to hold all five of her dogs at once.

One of their neighbors is a gardener, with a green thumb to rival anyone I know; he’s got his whole property planted with every sort of vine and tree with an eye for what grows well and what isn’t normally found around the area. Rhododendrons were one of his wife’s favorites, and the bushes we encountered were well twice my height. In Missouri we have cane poles growing naturally in our river bottoms. A relative of grass, they don’t really do anything, though I think they might be where sorghum molasses comes from. It isn’t uncommon for them to grow to six feet in height, and they’re normally about as thick as my thumb at the bottom. The canes die off each winter and the new crop grows from the old root system the next year. Standard stuff for me, and something I was well familiar with. So you can imagine how shocked I was to find this growing up out on the outskirts of the dairy farm’s corn fields:

On our last day at the dairy, we walked the paths again and took the camera. I played with a few ideas and had some fun with Mom and Wolfshine. She had some firsts all through the trip including this one - She doesn’t like spiders and snakes. But the largest and most dangerous snake up there is nothing worse than a garter snake. We found this fellow hiding near the base of a really big stump.

As far as really big stumps go, the firs and pines reach for the sky as fast as they can. That neighbor told us this tree had been planted near his house around 1965- 1970. No later than 1975 or so, and they’d cut it down last year due to a disease. We posed atop the stump and I climbed on top of it to take a picture. If you look close enough you can count some of the rings and realize that this tree was no more than forty years old, and it was wide enough to make a sizeable table. That’s a pretty far cry from our local oaks, that don’t get that kind of girth until they’ve stood for a hundred years or so.



One of the other things I wanted to do was a “before and after” picture, and I spent a little time searching for “the largest tree” we could find. I don’t know how old this one was, but I doubt it’s any older than three to five years. Wolfshine’s hand and mine encircled its trunk nicely. In contrast, the largest one we could find close enough to the path to get a picture of was probably older than I am; there’s no way to know because the fir stump at the house hadn’t had the competitors that this tree has. Age aside, Wolfshine and I clasped hands in the front, and could only touch our fingertips behind. Big tree!

As a final shot from Washington, there’s a life in those trees that all but refuses to die. They’ve got a path behind the farm that runs up a hill and directly to this tree that was blown over in one of the area’s infrequent storms. With a little work it’s possible to climb right up and sit down - the far end is some ten feet above the slope while the near side is only three feet up. I wanted a picture of Mom and Leroy up there - they call it the sweetheart tree after all, but Leroy was too busy to come and I’m not convinced he can really climb up safely since an accident on the farm years ago left him with a few issues. But Mom got another picture I wanted, and I think you’ll like it as much as I do.



We had fun in Washington. But after a week it was time to go home. Wolfshine had gotten a little jet lag and was wearing down. She never got too sick to adventure, but as we came home it was pretty obvious she wasn’t feeling to well. It was kind of unfortunate because we still had a few days off, and I had a plan.

When I was growing up we were just far enough away from Branson Missouri that a trip there was a major ‘vacational’ undertaking. Trips to Silver Dollar City (an 1800’s hillbilly style theme park for those that don’t know) were one of the highlights of my summers. I had wanted to go with Wolfshine well before we’d taken our vacation but we’d just not had the chance. We had planned to go after we got home from Washington, but since she was having trouble, it started looking like a day walking about the park was going to be a bad idea.

Oh yes, I was steeling myself for disappointment. It wasn’t that I minded minding my Wolfshine’s health over a fun trip. But being rather non-traditional in matters of love, I had sometime before the vacation “asked for her hand without asking.” Really, with her work in the Deli, she can’t wear a traditional solitaire diamond ring - and I wasn’t about to pick something on my own. So we went with a ring of her mother’s that she liked, and had a local jeweler design a copy. I had it paid for and in hand before we went to Washington, and Wolfshine had seen it and tested it for fit in the store. When we took it home I told her she couldn’t wear it until I actually asked her, but we did take it with us to show my mother. Wolfshine expected me to ask her when we were out there, but that didn’t happen. As I mentioned, I had a plan.

The morning we were to go to Silver Dollar City, my Wolfshine didn’t feel so well. Sadly, I concluded we should skip the trip, and so I set my plan aside and I asked her that morning to marry me, telling her what I was going to do if we had gone. Within an hour, would you believe it, she felt good enough to go ahead and go to Branson. lol. It was a bit of a stretch for her to go the whole day; she was ready to go home when we left.

But while we were there I reenacted my original plan. Remember the Ilwaco picture, where I asked my timid Wolfshine to join me on a rickety floating dock? I told her it was practice? It was. Since my first visit to S.D.C., there was a hanging bridge that crosses over a large ravine I always liked to go over - the scenery was always pretty and the whole of it was nicely shaded. The trees in the ravine bottom have grown up since then, so that the scenery is noticeably crowded, but the bridge is still there, bouncing under the feet of happy travelers and swaying gently from side to side.

I took my Wolfshine out to the center of that bridge and stopped. I told her that since she’d entered my life, I felt just like I felt then, as though I’d been walking along and suddenly looked down to find I was floating ten feet off the ground with her at my side. I told her that like that bridge, I felt that no matter which way we would go, things would only get better - we could only go up from there. And again, I asked her to marry me, and she smiled and said yes.

Our friend called it a sappy gesture, but really, it was the best thing I could think of. She really means that much to me, and we really are engaged. The world has been a much better place since she found me, and though I still think of the ones that came before from time to time, there will never be anyone close to my Wolfshine. When you read this, know that I love her. When you read this, know that I love you.

Right now we’re without a digital camera, or I’d put up a picture of the ring. Don’t worry, you will all see it soon enough. For now, just know that I am feeling blessed and happy - happier than I think I have ever been. It’s funny how life works out.

k

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See that picture over there in my webcam space? I didn't draw it! If it's yours, and you want me to take it down, I will gladly do so, with proof of ownership and a polite request. (Signature in your gallery will do.)

*****
So - I’ll continue to continue - to pretend
My life - will never end
And flowers - never bend
With the rainfall

~ Flowers Never Bend With the Rainfall - Simon and Garfunkle ~

"The difference between fiction and reality? Fiction has to make sense." Tom Clancy

"So you want to know the best way to address a dragon do you? Well, keep this at hand. Pencil and paper. You thought I was going to say "wit and wisdom" or such no? But you're wrong. For when dealing with dragons, if you're face to face with one, then you've already left wit and wisdom far behind you." ~ Taleron Kindrake

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