lenten intentions

I failed to get ashed yesterday except with white sage which doesn't show up too well.  As a Christian this period leading up to the resurrection of you know who is one of self denial or at least do no harm.  I don't see much of that in any direction that I look these days.  My only joy at this point is with nature.  

Me and the dogs slept in today and it was divine.  Those blinds keep the sun at bay until I'm ready to roll out.  I intend to do that more often because my body needs it.  A heating pad and ice block do wonders for osteo.  Also don't underestimate the power of tumeric.  

I have sawmill duty for three days and it will be my last weekend to work with Scotty.  When we first met he was from Missouri ( which he still is ) and he did the shifts nobody else wanted.  Low man, so to speak.  He and I became friends because we're both kinda' crazy in our own ways.  Me and him and a whole team of laboratory professionals have gone from doing CAP inspections on corporate to surviving and enjoying life.  His proximity to the beach is not something I will forget anytime soon.  Happy trails to you and Janet.  I will always remember you telling me what a kickass writer I am.  Google is our friend. He's a carpenter and creator and I asked him to make some frames out of old fence wood.  When he and Janet got married I returned the smaller one with a hydrangea pic that I took years ago.  It just matched, you know?

When I was shuttling for Quapaw Canoe he actually picked me up at a truck stop in Missouri and brought me home.  I don't even remember how I got to AK but I think it was by was of Blytheville.  There was this huge riverpark and I was waiting for Tony and the wonderdog to show up.  His friend Bob was from Iowa.  We all shared a beer on the way to the grab'n'go in Hayti.   Doggie dude had his own floaty vest.  

I first met John Ruskey quite by accident when he and his river partner Michael Clark did a Lewis and Clark gig at Dyersburg State.  There's not a lot of interesting things on the front page but that one caught my attention.  I contacted him in Clarksdale MS which is home to his custom canoe business.  He is an artist as well, with a beautiful wife and river daughter to boot.  Plus, a missing cat.  

Mike is in St Louis and there is an outpost in Helena.  The Mississippi River is a lifeline for our country and is being polluted daily by toxic waste from corporate America.  Billions of tons of potentially harmful substances are being shipped by barge.  Can you imagine if that shit caught on fire????

Long story short, somebody in Dyersburg had the vision to make our nasty little river better by cleaning it up.  The tour that John and Jim did with their folks was a real eye opener with lotso' tires and old appliances.  Their journey started in RoEllen and they floated all the way down to the farmer's market.  Genius.