SITTIN' ON THE DOCK

This is the view from the loading dock at work. J.D. Lumber..... Ironically that taller metal building is where I was supposed to work when I first arrived.

OOPS.... FORGOT THIS ONE.

I'm going camping in Canada Memorial Day Weekend, with a forcast for rain, I thought I would buy me some rain gear. Should stay dry now. I have quite a collection of Safety clothes now, the ones that are sent back, or have a graphic that we can't sell are cheap.... So I couldn't resist getting this..... I know, I'm wierd.

Safetyline

WHERE DO I WORK NOW?

THIS IS SAFETYLINE

( WWW.SAFETYLINE.COM )

THE OFFICE, MY DESK IS BACK THERE BEHIND CYNDI'S ON THE LEFT.

GRACE RUNS THE PRODUCTION FLOOR.

EVA IS HEADING BACK TO CALIFORNIA NEXT WEEK, SHE CAME UP FROM OUR OLD PLANT IN CALIFORNIA TO TRAIN SOMEONE IN THE SHIPPING DEPT.

YES, SHE'S THAT SHORT, I'M ON MY KNEES, WE HARRASS EACH OTHER ALL DAY LONG.

EVA AND DONNIE, THE NEW SHIPPING DEPT. MANAGER.

THE PRODUCTION FLOOR

THIS IS WHAT I GET TO LOOK AT ALL DAY... :)

MEET KITTY.

At Last!!! Pictures

My friend Adrienne and I at the Lilac Parade.... Her daughter is sitting on my left.

I tried to upload this photo Monday, but was not able to. This is Adriennes dog 'Cheech' he's an adorable lil' guy. I love it when he curls up in my lap and falls asleep. If I had only known when this picture was taken in the wee hours of Sunday morning, that this was the last time I'd see him.... Yesterday, (Wednesday) he was mauled by a Pit Bull that a neighbor was dog-sitting. When the PB was finaly chased away, Cheech was taking his last breath. Rest in Peace lil guy, what a terrible way to go.

Adrienne's new kitten's

Me, in my friend Linda barn, what a view from there!

" It's a Jammer's kinda night" Wednesdays at Jammers are always interesting.... I call it the resident shit-hole.... (sorry mom) .... It's a mess. I go with my boss and coworker, and their husbands. We're the only ones, other than Lori the bartender (below in middle, next to some woman that felt the need to be in the picture) that have all of our teeth....

I'M NOT KIDDING!

A COYOTE

Thought I'd Stop In and Say Hello

I figure by now, people have given up on me and this Blog, but I haven't had internet service access, and still don't have it at home. I've been living on four acres 6 miles north of downtown Newport, following the river home, the scenery leaves me in awe, every single day. I'm still in my Airstream, without water or electricity. I finally bought a generator, for when I feel like watching a movie, or need to charge up the battery. So, no, I am not going completely without lites, The battery keeps lights running for days on end if necessary.

It was below freeing when I first moved up there, and I have never bothered to see if the propane heaters work So a good Wool Pendleton blanket warmed me through the long cold nights.

Spring finally decided to arrive a couple of weeks ago. In St.Louis, I was used to seeing flowers in March, yet here, I didn't see any until mid April. The trees didn't blossom until two weeks ago, and until last week, nights still plumetted in to the 30's and 40's.

There's plenty of work to be done on the property, so when I'm not enjoying an almost daily bonfire, I'm busy cutting down dead trees, or the seemingly hundreds that are already on the ground. But late at night, when the moon is even just half, it's so bright, I need not carry a flashlight to walk around. The stars sparkle by the millions, there, and feels as though I'm closer to the sky than I've ever been before.

I started a new job several months ago. It's a simple job with a smaller owner run company, but for the first time in a while, I look forward to getting up and heading to work. I'm in the sales office of a High Visibility Safety Apparel manufacturer, located 5 miles out of Newport, in Priest River Idaho. ( www.safetyline.com ). Best translated as selling reflective vests and jackets that you may see on a highway construction worker. I've been learning everything there is to do here, beyond the office, and I joke around that I will be indespensable to them, knowing how to do it all. The pay is not that great, but considerably good for Idaho standards. The return of having a job that I love, weighs out the income rate.

I've been biking and hiking, and exploring, as always. But lately I've been reading like mad. I can't wait to finish one book, and jump to the next. I just finished Dean Koontz' VELOCITY. It was pretty darn good. There's a paragraph I found that I liked, and thought I'd share.

" There are days of doubt, more often lonely nights, when even the devout wonder if they are heirs to a greater kingdom than this earth and if they will know mercy-or if instead they are only animals like any other, whith no inheritance exept the wind and the dark. "

Several weeks ago I left my car unlocked, and my grandfathers fishing poles, my cooler, chairs, camera, and several other things were stolen... Not happy, but what can ya do? But luckily my camera was insured (thanks Matt) and it is being replaced with a newer model, and better memory card... So, thanks to whomever stole the camera, you did me some good. Although there were some 400 pictures that I did not get downloaded, that I will never recover.

Not much really left to speak of for now. I only have a few pictures to share, but they didn't want to download, I'll try again later.

Until next time.....

My Last Blog For a While.....

Hanging at Kelly's with My friends Eric and Tony

and that woman who's name I can never remember..... :)

Right now, I'm happy to say, I'm disconnecting from the cyber world, for reasons that those close to me know. I'm moving, I'll still be near though, near Newport that is. But right now I am in 'Pop-Up' hell. Just starting this has been a nightmare.....

A few odds and ends..... I guess this is normal up here in the northwest, but the big Tire dealer up here is offering free Beef with purchase of tires..... what's that about? I've never heard of such an odd 'free' offer.

I recieved terrible news Sunday. My absolute favorite restaurant in St.Louis is closing. A great Sicilian place located in the basement of a building. The ceilings were no more than seven feet high, but the maze of pipes and partitions had me walking through the place half bent over. This was THE best romantic first date place in the city, as far as I'm concerned. It's a shame, but the owner is growing older, and wants to enjoy retirement..... Damn!

A great newer CD that I just recently discovered, and love.... James Blunt. Not generaly my type of music, but I love this guy. One of my favorites, and I think it's the song that made him famous...... You're Beautiful.... It's so sad, really, but it's sparked a few great conversations....

YOU’RE BEAUTIFUL

MY LIFE IS BRILLIANT.
MY LOVE IS PURE.
I SAW AN ANGEL.
OF THAT I’M SURE.
SHE SMILED AT ME ON THE SUBWAY.
SHE WAS WITH ANOTHER MAN.
BUT I WON’T LOSE NO SLEEP ON THAT,
‘CAUSE I’VE GOT A PLAN.

YOU’RE BEAUTIFUL. YOU’RE BEAUTIFUL.
YOU’RE BEAUTIFUL, IT’S TRUE.
I SAW YOUR FACE IN A CROWDED PLACE,
AND I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO,
‘CAUSE I’LL NEVER BE WITH YOU.

YEAH, SHE CAUGHT MY EYE,
AS WE WALKED ON BY.
SHE COULD SEE FROM MY FACE THAT I WAS,
FLYING HIGH,
AND I DON’T THINK THAT I’LL SEE HER AGAIN,
BUT WE SHARED A MOMENT THAT WILL LAST TILL THE END.

YOU’RE BEAUTIFUL. YOU’RE BEAUTIFUL.
YOU’RE BEAUTIFUL, IT’S TRUE.
I SAW YOUR FACE IN A CROWDED PLACE,
AND I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO,
‘CAUSE I’LL NEVER BE WITH YOU.

YOU’RE BEAUTIFUL. YOU’RE BEAUTIFUL.
YOU’RE BEAUTIFUL, IT’S TRUE.
THERE MUST BE AB ANGEL WITH A SMILE ON HER FACE,
WHEN SHE THOUGHT UP THAT I SHOULD BE WITH YOU.
BUT IT’S TIME TO FACE THE TRUTH,
I WILL NEVER BE WITH YOU……

So, not that this song exactly envokes the next question, but it's something to think about, or not.......

First, I guess ask yourself if you have ever had the 'perfect man or woman' in mind. The one that you secretly admire in a magazine, or want to talk to on the street, the one that is the perfect body type, perfect features, etc.....Now add to it the little things that you you like in a person, a foreign accent, a country twang, a walk, a style, a favorite eye color, hair color, etc.....

Imagine you met this person, you click imediately, the second your eyes meet, you feel as though you have known this person for your entire life, and the look on their face tells you the same. You feel as though you not only know this person, but you were meant to spend the rest of your lives together.......

Would you jump on the chance to see if this person, this man or woman of your dreams, would you go for it? Find out if you could make something work with this, the one you've always dreamed of? Or would you walk away, knowing that you could end up crushed? Knowing that the one you've always dreamed of is not the one for you?..... Yes, another may come into your life someday, that may be more compatible, but I'm talking about possibly waiting for this more compatible person for many long years, maybe forever. Do you walk away and keep the fantasy, or do you risk it not working out?

Now, let's say that you decide to go for it, but you find out that you have one night with this dream, this vision, this perfect entity of your imagination, and no matter how perfect the evening may go, you know you will never see them again. Do you continue, or do you walk away. ....

Discussing this with friends who are in a relationship is difficult, since the truth could irritate the other, but it's a good question, in my mind, to think about. WHat if it were to happen, what would you do.

Trivial I'm sure, but a much better topic that talking politics, and prejudice. I've never really been one to like those topics. But this one. It happened to someone I know, and the emotional turmoil it caused sparked drama, confusion, excitement, and more emotions and questions than I've ever heard of flooding a soul at one time.

So, if you met the one of your dreams, and could spend only one night with them, would you go for it, or would you walk away??????

When I return to the cyber world, I hope i have some responses. Don't forget, the anonymous comment feature would work well in this case... :)

While I'm gone from the Cyber world, I'll be working part time at Rees' Greenhouse just outside of town. Since I don't have a garden this year, this will be a great opportunity to get my hands dirty. I have tried to post pictures of it, but the Blogger is being stuburn. The view is great, and the setting is perfect. Of course my ol' horticulturist friend in St.Louis would have a heart-attack if he knew I was working in a greenhouse. Where I always started with the perfect garden, by August, there were usually only a few plants hanging on for dear life, he always blamed me for not watering.... Oh well. I just wont mention that fact to Tony. :)

What else have I been doing??.... Oh.... I've been helping my good friends Phil and Coy work on their new farmhouse in Elk, aprox. 20 miles from town. OK, I've been standing around talking and entertaining them more than anything, but it's good to be finding good quality friends up here.

Saddly enough, I think I'm out of things to say. I'm sure I'll have many more in the future. Losing the 'net' AND my cable.... ugh.... it'll be tough....

Until next time. Thanks for taking the time to read this.

My Favorite Watering Hole.....

_______________________________

Kelly's Bar and Grill

in Downtown Newport, Washington

______________________

"Kelly’s is the oldest operating business in Newport, also the second oldest bar in the State of Washington. Established in 1894, Kelly’s has always been a popular watering hold. They had a bear out back of the bar, and when someone would get a little too drunk, they would throw him in with the bear to sober up, of course the bear was tame, but most people didn’t know that. Kelly’s has always remained open, even through prohibition, where they kept the barrels in the basement. The massive Brunswick Back bar spands 24 full feet and towers nearly 12 feet high. The bar was shipped around the Cape of Good Hope to San Francisco back in the early 1800’s. The massive structure concluded it’s journey to Newport on a three month wagon trip."

An excerpt taken from the Menu

Not the original Cash Register, but it completes the authenticity

of this great old bar.

Photos of the Drunkards with the Bear out back.

When I first rolled into town, that very night, I planned on stopping into Kelly's for a Celebratory Beer, but they were already closed at 10:00 p.m. It seems the sidewalks roll up pretty early here in town, or the party moves over to Oldtown, Idaho.

I had been in Kelly's twice before, once during each trip to Washington, prior to my move. After settling in here, I stopped, bellied up to the bar, and struck up conversation with the lovely Julia. I mentioned that I had just moved to town, and she disagreed. She said she had served me before.... Truth is she had.... IN JUNE!!! almost four months prior to this talk. I couldn't believe that she remembered me. The next day I stopped in, and was served by the vivacious Amy, who also remembered serving me when I was here in August.

So, I just thought I would share this story, because it adds to the reasons why I love this little town.

An old photo of the bear out back holding on to a drunkard. 

The Secret that Lies Within a Small Town Feed Store.

I was so shocked to walk into the Newport Feed

store here in town and find a mini zoo!

All I know is that this guy was rescued. There wasn't any information on him, but he's a beautiful young deer.


This Lil' Guy popped out to say hello, What a Cutie!!!!

I'm sure he has a name, but again, no information on him, but he was having fun swinging around showing me what he can do.

------------------------------

But the real surprise was this BIG girl!!!

---------------------------

This is Lilly, a six year old Bengal Tiger who was smuggled into the country, and declawed as a baby.

Here's a little word from the Owners......

Nobody knows better than we that an animal like Lilly belongs in the wild. Unfortunately, greedy poachers ruled out that possibility for her when she was just a cub. Now we must do all we can to make her life as good and meaningful as possible.

A year ago she tested positive for Feline Immune Deficiency Syndrome, (AIDS in a Cat) But now a year later, after great, loving care, she tests negative. One of our main goals this last year was to make sure she was very healthy and happy as stress could have pushed the Aids to progression.

We find it extremely humorous, when customers observe her for five minutes and make remarks like; “She’s not happy, she wants out, she’s depressed”. To say it as plain as possible, these people have NO IDEA what she thinks feels or wants. After being with her for six years, day after day, we know her better than anyone else, and she LOVES it here. She doesn’t want out of her pen because it’s hers and she feels safe and secure in it. She LOVES people and all the attention she receives. When no one is looking at her she lays down, but when some one comes by she paces, because she wants attention. We wish we could allow everyone to have contact with her because that’s what she wants. Unfortunately, Federal Law prohibits that.

We are grateful for all of Lilly’s friends who have generously donated for her care. She really loves her new home.

It seemed that Lilly didn't much care for my camera. I'm used to a cat hissing, but I had to jump back when she hissed at me, WOW! What a mouth on that girl.


ghjkhgjk

Catching Back up.....

I've been having a lot of trouble with the blog, it hasn't wanted to let me upload pictures. But, finally, today, I seem to be able to.

This is from Last Sunday's drive with my bud, Matt who visited from St.Louis. We had to keep stopping to snap shots of the sunset, with every second, and every turn, the view was breath-taking. This is from the East side of the Pend Oreille river, looking northwest.

Sorry for the blurry photo, but here's a close-up of the two horses in the shadow of the sunset above. I don't know what they are, but they're huge, fascinating, and beautiful.

This is on the East hillside over the Pend Oreille River, looking west

Below is looking down river, or is it up river? The Pend Oreille flows North into Canada, not south as would be expected. This is looking North, from the bridge into Idaho. If you read early posts, that island is the one I kayaked to near the campground.

This photo below is something very special. This will hopefully soon be Joey's new home. A quiet, serene place where you can become one with nature, sit in silence for hours on end, hear nothing related to modern society. Once a guy I knew told me that at night, from his house, you could hear the coyotes calling out. He described it as the sounds of women screaming. Here, you can hear the coyotes screaming. It's a sound that sends shivers running down your spine.

Sitcoms and SeaHawks

Just a few random thoughts.

GO SEAHAWKS!!!!

Yes, oddly enough, no sooner did I move here, I was transformed into a Seahawks fan. So, Best of luck. The Rams had their run, it's time for another team to take over.

Next, I never have been a Sitcom fan. I love re-runs, but that's about it. I have started watching a few from time to time, like ER, yeah, WAY back in the beginning, but haven't seen it for many years. My ex loved Amazing Race, which was fun, but if you miss out on an episode, then you're lost, and the stress was crazy, yes stress.... Yelling at the television, mad that certain people didnt' get booted off. But now, I have fallen in love with Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy (Yeah for the character that lives in an Airstream!!!! ) So, Way to go girls on your Golden Globe awards. I know that's way overdue.

Congrats to Sandra Oh!!!! Love Her in everything I've ever seen her in (Under the Tuscan Sun... a personal favorite) !

Back to my book. LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE IT... I'm going to miss reading it when it's done. But there are so many other books listed within this one, I have been making notes. Wings of the Dove was filmed in the Palazzo Barbarro which is mentioned often in the book. So, I rented it to refresh my memory. It's rather sad, Matt and I were supposed to be going to Italy this spring, but I told him not to go through with the plans. Wish I would have continuewd on with those plans. it makes me miss a place I've never been before.

Not much else to say.

Until Next Time...

Ron

A GREAT BOOK TO READ....

If you like Venice at all, or any book that deals with truth, reality, or true crime, you'll love this book.... More so, if you liked the book MIDNIGHT IN THE GARDEN OF GOOD AND EVIL by JOHN BERENDT (and I'm not talking about the terrible movie made about that book, I'm talking about the fantastice book that was mutilated into a movie) you'll LOVE LOVE LOVE this book. I'm only 17 pages into it, and I already know you will love it.

It's called

THE CITY OF FALLING ANGELS by JOHN BERENDT

Here's what he has to say about it, and several exerpts (sp?)

Author's Note

This is a work of nonfiction. All the people in it are real and are identified by their real names. There are no composite characters.

" I understood why so many stories set in Venice were mysteries. Sinister moods could be easily conjured by shadowy back canals and labyrinthine passageways, where even the initiated sometimes lost their way. Reflections, mirrors, and masks suggested that things were not what they seemed. Hidden gardens, shuttered windows and unseen voices spoke of secrets and possibly the occult. Moorish-style arches were reminders that, after all, the unfathomable mind of the East had had a hand in all this."

"The dichotomy between the two cults- Apollonian restraint and Dionysian abandon- is very important to the Italian theater, and particularly Venice. Do you know the difference between Apollonian music and Dionysian music? Apollonian music its the music of the city, and that includes opera. It has a codified form and follows accepted structural norms.

The music of Dionysus is the music of the countryside. It is improvised music, spontaneous, witout structure, formless. Nowadays we would call it pop music. It evokes a sense of pure pleasure. It is the music of oblivion, of alcohol, of wine and drunkenness..... of Dionysus and Bacchus."

If you pick up this book, you're sure to enjoy it..

So on to that Stolen Car.

I didn't realize that after my computer froze up, that part of my post, posted.... so, on to my car being stolen. So, all of that luggage that I left behind, was really my clothes. My good clothes, and all of my costumes, that I didn't know I would want for a 'camp' drag show were all in my car. Along with my favorite quilt, baseball cap, that I've had for many many years... etc, were all in my car. But it was stolen one late night just outside of the bar. Several days later it was recovered with a broken out window, and nothing but a knitted winter hat that Nicole in Fort Collins CO made for me, and a few other stupid things, like all of my underwear....

So, I lost VERY much that night. I was thrilled that my car was found. That really was the most important part. So, I've moved on. I did keep the wig that I made years ago, that has some 9000 feet of curling ribbon woven into it....LOL.... You'll get to see that in the next post. I have a lot to catch up on.

So, I drive around in this freezing cold with an open window, but I just have to put on my new hat, and breathe in that wonderfuly fresh air. Well, at least I try to think about it that way.

So Far Behind

Hello all, sorry I haven't posted recently... Lots going on. I'll get some pics of Seattle up on Monday. Have a great weekend.

Ron