Gratitude

Thoughts.

Have known, but finally realized how much I need to raise my vibration levels on a daily basis, and embrace the joys more than the negatives. But I also need to embrace the negatives, not letting them take over, but using them as a measurement by which I understand how wonderful the positives really are.

This is hard, since I have, for most of my life, I think, tried to keep my energy levels low, thinking it would serve me better in the long run. It has and hasn’t, and it’s time for a change.

Today I started with an indoor walk. I’m going to listen to fun music when I get a chance. I’m going to find something else I can do that will fit into what is going to be a long workday, that will make me feel good.

I am smiling because I am a great aunt of a baby who is a total miracle.

I smiling because I don’t have to buy a new car for awhile, and my old one is working great.

I am smiling because I got in touch with a cousin I haven’t spoken to in a very long time, and I will, hopefully, see her at family reunion this year.

I am smiling because my book is coming together.

I am smiling because I have a job I love, friends who I love, family that I love, a home that I love, a cat that I love, a life that I love.

I am blessed.

I am grateful.

I smile.

Writing Prompt Challenge Day #7

WC: 200

genre: childrens

character: pilot

material: fire

sentence: this is delicious

bonus: great storm

Billy walked around his airplane, checking it just like his father had taught him.

Even though it didn’t really have wings, wheels, or a tail, he was still careful because he was going to be a pilot, just like his dad when he grew up.

Satisfied, he climbed into the cardboard cockpit.

“Everything is a-ok,” he said. “Let’s get some water in the tank and put out that forest fire.”

“Okay,” Sam replied. “Let’s go.”

Billy made noises like an engine starting up. They were just about to fly when his mom called out, “Lunch is ready!”

He climbed out of the box quickly. “Oh good! A great storm just started. The fire is out.”

“What about me?” Sam asked, sadly.

Billy pulled pieces of a cookie from out of his pocket.

“You can have this.” He laid them on top of the box.

“Who are you talking to? ” Sally asked from the doorway. “There’s nobody there.”

“Yes, there is, it’s my copilot,” Billy replied.

They went to the kitchen arguing about his imaginary friend.

Back at the airplane the cookie pieces lifted up and then disappeared. There were crunching noises that nobody heard.

“This is delicious,” Sam said.

Writing Prompt Challenge Day #6

With studied nonchalance, Jessie sauntered to the door, pretending to sip wine from the cut glass goblet. Pausing to make sure the other inhabitants remained preoccupied with each other, were watching the game, or browsing the buffet table, she slipped into the hall, closing the door behind her.

The sound of rabidly excited baseball fans rolled through the stadium hall as the player who’d slammed the ball into far right field while she was escaping made his way around the bases.

Despite the noise, she felt her tension level fall a notch. Taking a deep breath, she let it out slowly.

“Lord, what a day!” she muttered.

Being an up and coming athlete who need sponsorship sucked, because it meant she had to schmooze with snooty rich bitches, and dodge advances from creepy, predator-type bastards, who assumed they had the right to make slimy propositions.

Only her manager’s timely intervention had allowed her to get away for a brief respite before she did something regrettable.

She had been out less than a minute, but it was enough to restore her equilibrium. About to reopen the door, she noticed something glittering several feet away.

The curved display case, which separated the entrance of this private box from the next, was shattered. Apparently made of safety glass, even though it was heavily cracked, only a few pieces had landed on the floor.

Now that she was looking, she could see the handle of what appeared to be a snow shovel sticking out of the hole the perpetrator had made. Then something inside moved, and something large else fell with a crash.

Intrigued, she crept closer, peering through the hole.

Her mouth fell open as the biggest possum she’d ever seen crawled sedately along the shelf, knocking plaques and trophies off their perches.

Writing Prompt Challenge Day #5

WC: 550
Genre: Adventure
Character: Angel
 Material: a fridge
Line: It's your fault
Bonus: damsel in distress

"Where are you?" She whimpered.

Reaching down she shimmied the rope that was supposed to be binding her to the tree back up around her waist. She’d had to do it several times, and it was getting extremely annoying.

Chaz had been in a hurry, neglecting to fasten the line properly. Not that it mattered. She only needed to give the appearance of subjugation so that, after triumphantly defeating the villain, her hero, Roberto would feel even more heroic as he released her.

The problem was it had been hours. It was going to be dark soon, and there was no sign of either of them. If no one showed up soon she was going to be alone in the wilderness, in the dark. That was unacceptable, and definitely not the way this was supposed to play out.

She listened, hoping to hear the approach of someone, anyone; at this point she didn’t care who. But there was only the incessantly chirping birds, and the occasional rustle of a foraging squirrel to break the silence.

No one was coming. All was lost!

“Dear heaven,” she exclaimed. “Save me!”

A brassy trumpet fanfare echoed through the woods, and a pillar of light thumped onto the forest floor, causing the rope to give up even the suggestion of holding her captive, landing in a limp pile around her feet.

Screaming she tried to back up through the tree trunk. It resisted, though a few leaves came loose and floated down upon her head.

“Behold!” the light thundered. “You have called upon heaven, and heaven has answered!”

The world spun, taking her with it into darkness.

*

“Hey, come on! Wake up!”

The voice was exquisite, rich and musical. Nonetheless, it was annoying in its insistence on bringing her back to consciousness, forcing her to realize she was lying on the ground, and a stick was trying to gouge out one of her kidneys.

Shifting to one side to relieve the pain, she opened her eyes and found a being of radiant luminosity returning her gaze.

If pressed she would not have been able to describe what she was seeing, if it was male, female, clothed or naked. But the impression of great beauty was aided by soft, ethereal music emanating from nowhere and everywhere, filling the area with a sound that transcended the senses, wrapping around her like a sheet of finest silk.

It was so wondrous, so breathtakingly beautiful, so awe-inspiring… until it burped. No, not a burp, a belch of monumental proportions that actually made her hair whip around as if caught in a wind tunnel.

“Shorry ‘bout that,” the vision slurred.

“You’re drunk?” Krista’s awe turned to disbelief.

“No, no, not drunk.” The angel denied, then staggered to the left before it catching itself by spreading what she assumed were its wings. “Jush had a few drops of th’ old ambrosia. Good stuff!”

Disbelief became outrage. She scrambled to her feet, glaring into what she assumed was its face.

“I was kidnapped, tied to a tree and left to possibility be mauled by tigers in the night,” she yelled. “I was supposed to be rescued by a handsome prince!”

“Yeah, about tha'. Shorry, but it's your fault. We were having a l’il party, and the fridge landed on ‘im.”

Writing Prompt Challenge Day #4

Day #4 Writing Prompt Challenge

Word Count - 150

Genre - Magical Realism

Character - movie producer

Material - binoculars

Sentence - "Where did you get that wound?"

Bonus - involves a fight

Who are you?

Rose Chatham, your new producer.

You’re the sorceress.

Yes.

What happened to Stan?

There have been complaints. The studio sent me investigate. I did. He is gone.

Where?

Why are you here?

We need a bigger basilisk for the fight scene. The one we have will get eaten by the chimera in no time flat.

Why didn’t you get the proper size one to begin with?

Stan said it wasn’t in the budget. I was going to have it out with him, but now you’re in charge.

Yes I am, and I agree. I’ll have the trainer provide what you need.

Great. By the way, I have to ask, where did you get that wound?

Rose’s enigmatic smile made him pale and quickly leave the room.

Conjuring up binoculars, she checked to see if the griffon was done eating. Satisfied, she began going over the new budget.

Writing Prompt Challenge Day #3

Writing Prompt Challenge #3

WC: 250

Genre: Crime

Char: Child hater

Material: binoculars

Quote: Everyone keeps ignoring me

Extra: Character hated by everyone

Dangling the binoculars strap from her index finger, Sandra raised her left eyebrow quizzically.

"I like to look at birds," Bert snarled defensively. Snatching the glasses away, he set them on the windowsill pulling the grimy curtain back into place, returning the room to what was obviously its customary claustrophobic gloom.

Waddling to the dingy sofa, he plopped down onto the beaten-to-exhaustion cushions with a loud groan. The detective struggled not to gag as an all but visible odor, reminiscent of mothballs, and musty, unwashed hair, assaulted her nose. 

She kept her reaction ruthlessly under control, unwilling to appear weak in front of her partner, who remained standing at the entrance to the cluttered room.

"I understand you were served with a cease and desist notice from city council because you were calling daily to complain about the neighborhood kids."

Bert’s face reddened. “They do it just to make me mad, but when I told the police they ignored me. Everyone always keeps ignoring me. I didn’t do anything to that kid, even though you all think I did. Everyone hates me!” he whined.

She was about to ask why, when without warning a three foot long monitor lizard emerged from under the coffee table, moving quickly toward her. Her gun was trained on it without conscious thought. 

As if intimidated by her action the beast stopped several feet away, giving her a cold reptilian stare, before opening its mouth in a threatening hiss.

“There’s a good kitty,” Bert crooned.

Writing Prompt Challenge Day #2

Writing prompt challenge, Day 2 -
Word count: 250
Genre: adventure
Character: fascist
material: carrot
phrase: This means war
Optional: Civilization has come to an end

Fascists are icky people. Just sayin'…

__
I looked down upon the city which lay in ruins, collapsed buildings crushing the vehicles that had been fleeing the destruction. The end had come not with a whimper, but with a bang. Although there had been plenty of whimpering. Millions had died. And yet, there were still so many survivors.

I thought of some of those I’d come across in my travels, the ones that had threatened me, run me off, or even tried to kill me. They had tried and they failed.

The chaos of anarchy was a common denominator throughout the land. But now, things were about to change.

I looked across the lines of soldiers I'd recruited; the ones who believed in bringing order back to the world. I’d dangled the carrot, and they’d taken the bait, believing that under my leadership, we could and would restore civilization. But this time I was not going to let some weak, all-people-are-equal idiocy weaken the foundations of governance.

Everyone would do what I wanted, get what I allowed, and my generosity would keep them safe and fed, allow them utilities, and jobs. But only if they behaved.

A shot rang out. Behind me a scream and a thud as someone collapsed. There were calls for a medic, but I did not look back to see, my focus solely on those who stood against me and mine.

“Sir”! My top general approached. “They refused your offer. What now?

“It’s obvious,” I replied. “They didn’t listen. This means war!”

Writing Prompt Challenge Day 1

The challenge was 400 words.

The genre: romance

The character; communist

Material; a bottle of champagne

Sentence; "Do you enjoy hurting people?"

Bonus: Character is fearless to the point of stupidity.

I am amused. Heh

__

"No," she screamed as the ship began to rise.

Raising the bottle, she threw it as hard as she could at the dull, metallic surface.

Glass shattered. Cool liquid splashed back against her face.

For a moment, the ships movement paused, before it once again began to lift. Desperate and determined, she took several steps backward, then ran forward as fast as she could, flinging herself onto the wet surface. Immediately she slid backward, the wetness of the champagne, and the steep slope of the ships hull rejecting her attempt.

"Please!" She cried, as she tumbled to the ground. "Don’t go! Please!"

Her landing cushioned by broken wheat stalks, she watched his ship fly away, the devastating realization that she would never see him again leaving her feeling as if she’d been thrown from a fifth story window onto concrete.

"I love you", she whispered as the craft disappeared into the night sky.

Curling into a ball, she began to weep hysterically.

Eventually, however, her tears ran out, and that’s when she realized she was not alone.

“You said you love me.”

For a moment she thought she was hallucinating.

“I have indeed returned.” His mental voice was deep and sonorous, unmistakable.

Struggling into a sitting position, she used the tail of her shirt to wipe eyes before she could focus on the figure standing before her.

“You come back?” she croaked. “Why?”

"You said you love me," he repeated, his tone wondering. “Even though I kidnapped you, implanted a device within you, and removed your memory, you still love me?”

“Yes,” she breathed. “I do. The moment I saw you I fell in love. Do you love me, or do you just enjoy hurting people?”

“I was just doing my job. But you were different. You are different,” he replied. He turned away slowly.

She bolted to her knees, reaching out. “No! Please!”

He looked back. “I cannot stay.”

“Then take me with you,” she pleaded.

“My people are not like yours. We believe in total equality.”

“That’s wonderful,” she exclaimed. “I’m a communist. I will fit fit right in.”

“If you’re sure…”

“I am,” she interrupted.

“Then come.” He extended his hand toward her.

She took it, careful not to put too much weight on it and stood, towering over his slight, gray figure. Looking down into those large, dark pupiless eyes, she smiled tenderly.

“Let’s go, my love.”

Ever get the feeling that you are not alone? I don't mean alone on the planet; not alone within yourself? Your body? Your mind? (And I'm also not talking about demonic possession, or schizophrenia, either.)

No, what I'm talking about is your personality, separated into small bits, each of which has a separate task it takes on that gets you through your life.

I was introduced to this idea from the Light Body course I've been taking on and off for awhile. In it, they talk about the sub-personalities that have developed, and how, due to their perceptions, they can sabotage you, even if that is not their intent. Their purpose is to keep you safe, but what worked in the short run can do terrible damage in the long run, because they have developed habitual behaviors that are now running in the background (habits do that), and you don't even realize that that programming is keeping you from moving forward. You just... be the way you have been for so long because it doesn't take effort.

But, in the back of your mind, there's a little jail cell where the you who is supposed to be accomplishing things is rattling the bars, and screaming "LET ME OUT!"

As much as your habitual sub-personality program tries, it cannot not completely silence that voice, though it can come up with some diabolical ways to distract from it. Specifically, addiction to things as, apparently, benign as video games, and as viciously destructive as drugs, alcohol, or ingesting laundry detergent pods on a dare. (Really!? GAH!) 

I was listening to a guided meditation, and it was telling me to envision what my hearts desire was in that moment. As I did, I became aware of what I began to visualize as a block, right over and just above my heart. It felt familiar, as if I had experienced this before. And then I realized - I have experienced this before, many times. I've even previously identified it, but didn't do anything about it, just accepted.

This time, however, I'm taking a different tack. I'm renaming it. And every chance I get, I'm going to address it, comfort it, and show it that even though it used to be called 'anticipated disappointment', its new name is now 'anticipated gratitude'. We will put aside the history and fears that led to developing this mindset, and encourage me to keep the channel open to receiving the best, rather than expecting the worst, or, at the very least, the least.

This is my intention. I know it will be difficult at the beginning, because changing deepset programming is. But it's time now. I've got too much to do. Too much I want and need to do to fulfill my 'soul work' in the time I have left on this plane, however much that may be.

Onward!

4/26/14

Okay, it's official. I've been spending WAAAY too much time on Facebook and not enough time doing what I'm supposed to be doing.  So that means I'm going to have to limit my online time severely, which also means I won't be surfing and IMing or whatever as much as I have. Nor will I be checking and replying to messages and whatnot.

Sorry guys, it's necessary. Right now I'm in a particularly tricky spot on the Earth book as well as the romance and it's crucial that I keep my focus in the right place.

I will check in once a week with a blog entry, but otherwise don't expect to hear form me much for the next month.

:-(

4/25/14

Thought I was going to lose my mind.

I spent an hour writing on the Earth book this morning, went to save it and promptly lost it. I spent another hour trying to figure out where it had gone since I knew it didn't just disappear. One good thing about this computer is that it saves everything every few minutes, whether you want it to or not. I just couldn't figure out what had happened to my doc between one keystroke and the next.

Eventually what I discovered is that when I download from my Dropbox the document is opened in a chrome-extension location, not the Google docs area. (!) After working on it, the next part - saving it back up to Dropbox, is a whole different kettle of fish (still haven't figure that one out yet.)

All in all, this thing has its good points (portability, long battery, other stuff) and bad points (not intuitive, unclear instructions, does not support some programs I want to use).

Chromebook has all kinds of internal nooks and crannies that are not evident or intuitive. If you don't know how to use it it's a process to get the answers.

Nothing is perfect. I'm just glad I found my doc.

Addressed BIF's and the GOE. Trying to figure out how to insert the beginning of plate tectonics and the electromagnetic field. And somewhere in there life is creeping out of the deep. (Should've stayed put - Earth's first great extinction is just around the corner.)

APRIL 23, 2014

Major discovery - I do not work well or quickly when I write in sections and then try to merge the bits.

From now on I’m going to just steam ahead from beginning to end within a scene. I’ll add notes and additions after first draft. I know I’ll work faster doing it that way.

Yes, I know, but I needed to learn this on my own (I’m stubborn that way.)

I’ve finished Chapter One of my romance this morning and I’m going to work on Earth this afternoon when I get back from work.

I’ll be checking in with Blog here later.

Excelsior!

Finished first chapter of my romance novel. Going forward with Chapter 2 and not looking back until I complete the first draft.

Also started to readdress my Earth book. Am on the Proterozoic (third Eon) - the longest single section of Earths history at 2 billion years. Lots to talk about. 

Forward.

APRIL 21, 2014

I am really and truly blessed with the bestest family in the world. Apparently my mother Canary and oldest sister Darlene decided I needed help with my writing and they conspired to fool me by telling me they were gifting me with a new hard drive.

My question was, why did i need a new hard drive?

I was told on Saturday to expect this on Monday and spoke with both Mom and Darlene on Easter Sunday about it. Mom told me to let her know when it showed up because she might have a use for a hard drive herself. (Devious!) Neither one gave a hint as to the true gift that was going to show up.

I had to go in to work this afternoon so missed the delivery. When I got home there it was in its smiley face box.

Opening the first layer i was met with a wholly unexpected sight - an Acer Chromebook computer!

It’s designed to boot up immediately, update automatically, and do other tasks almost effortlessly. Best of all I can use it anywhere. Unlike my old tablet whose battery has been long dead, this one has hours of autonomous use.

Do I sound like a commercial? Sorry, I’m definitely not trying to get people to buy one of these because it’s not right for everyone, but for me and my writing adventure it’s perfect!

Darlene even had me do research on chromebooks for her. (Doubly devious!)

Love you Mom and Darlene. :-)

Meanwhile, I did a little writing Saturday and virtually none Sunday because of the holiday. I’m going to make up for it now by going out on the porch on this very warm and lovely day with my new battery operated writing machine. YAY!!!!

Moving along

Been writing the last couple of days. Yay.

It's going pretty well but I've got to figure out how to keep out of my own way.  I am moving along with the romance, and so far, even though my heroine and hero have not yet met they are converging towards the interception point fairly easily.

Show, don't tell. That is the goal. It's harder than you'd think.

I'm trying not to get bogged down by adverbs, or use 'was' and 'were' more than four times per page. Also, I'm trying to make this thing interesting without being too obvious or too mysterious. <sigh - Why do I want to be a writer, again?>

And meanwhile the Earth is whispering in my ear, trying to seduce me to come back to her story. I keep telling her I'll be returning soon, but for something that is over 4.5 billion years old she's strangely impatient.

But I am writing. Good for me. :-)

 April 17, 2014

Yesterday was for crap as far as writing. My brain just refused to deal with reality, logic and anything to do with forward progress in my life on any front but cleaning a bit and staring blankly at computer games.

I hate when that happens.

My sister Darlene tells me that since my moon sign is in Capricorn I was deeply affected by the glory that was a full lunar face (more or less) shining brightly over my (and the rest of the western worlds) hovel.

Huh.

So, after having my bi-weekly chat with the aforementioned sibling, I’ve decided that I’m going to take a brief break from writing about the Earth and try to address the incipient romance novel that’s been cheeping quietly in the background.

I realize that trying to do two projects is not the best idea for a wannabe author, but I need time to process all the information I’ve gathered, as well as figure out the timeline in terms of which extinction affected the future of all life as we know it, when.

Meanwhile I’ve got at least a ream of paper already covered in thousands of words that need to be incorporated into one manuscript and the whole thing has begun to overwhelm me, thus the decision to take a short break.

I don’t anticipate that it will be longer than a few days. Last time I had this type of… block, if you will, Earth kept bugging me until I relented (threatening to open up a gaping hole under my car is a great incentive).

So, that’s where I am at the moment.

More to come, without a doubt.

More to talk about on the same day.
I got so  tangled up I decided to go back and re read from the beginning to see what I'd already addressed in previous chapters.

I can't decide if that's a mistake or a blessing. There's a pattern emerging  in which a forward step that happens on the planet, but then  a major catastrophe that seems to cancel things out and the whole thing has to start over again. My problem comes in trying to figure out which beginning I'm addressing at any given point.

One thing is certain - Life is tenacious. No matter what come up (or down) some form of what we consider living biological material is able to survive and repopulate after the most extraordinarily violent events.

Yikes.

So, back to the salt mines.

Stay tuned.

Okay. I've decided I'm going to start blogging to keep me focused. Right now I'm organizing my previous notes and writings about the Proterozoic, which turns out to be the longest Eon in Earth's history. It's almost exactly 2.5 billion years of set up for the main event (complex life - as in dinosaurs, bugs, and, oh yes, humans).

On a side note, i must have been brain damaged when i thought i was going to finish this thing in a few months. The research alone is taking eons (hah) to do.

Every once is a while I have to take a break so my head will stop exploding, but Ma Nature keeps poking me until i have to get back at it.

Right now I'm redoing the Siderian period. Slime poop (oxygen) is just beginning to bond with iron in the oceans, which are green. (The sky is red, btw.) Continents are finally begin to stabilize.
It's truly fascinating to see the progression from rock pile to fully functioning, life bearing planet. (and she knows she's fabulous.)

All roads lead to home

DAY 15

Got up, ate breakfast and got on the road. As we were getting in the van an extremely loud, obviously jet engine noise disrupted the air waves. Up above a military jet was probably practicing or training and I saw one very extreme dive. (Again with the crazy people!)

So now we are heading home. We’ve timed our trip so that hopefully we will hit Chicago very late or very early, as before. Our ETA is around 7am. We’ll see.

I’ve seen deer, turkey and a flock of what might be swans flying overhead.

Minnesota seems to be at the forefront of windmill farming.

As I drove Animal read aloud “THE POWER OF HABIT”, by Charles Duhigg. (I highly recommend it for those who want to make change.) At intervals we would then discuss how to apply the information to our own lives. Very helpful.

Forward!

Oh, and btw, remember Dan, the lost hiker? We found out that he was found dead, not far from his car. Don't know details but he was, apparently, an experienced hiker. And why they didn't find him sooner with the crew they had out looking for him is also a mystery. Will keep checking, 'cuz I'm curious.

DAY 16

We drove through the night, stopping only for food (Subway), gas, and to change drivers. Made it through Chi-town around midnight. Yay.

Got back to Animals house around 9am. While she secured the peeps, I went up to the spare bedroom and crashed for a few hours. Around 2pm we collected the girls from Sherry’s house and then Animal took me home.

So now I’m back where I started physically, although the girls are giving me the cold shoulder, more, I think, for the car ride than the absence. They’ll get over it (I hope.)

…

AND IN CONCLUSION…

After a trip of that scope I find that there is a definite, positive shift in my mental health. Yes, there was death on the trip (RIP peeps). I also heard about the Aurora massacre but refused to listen to details, (and still don’t want to know ‘cuz it’s so horrific), and the fires on the plains, though destructive, are a natural part of the renewal in that part of the country.

On the other hand, I witnessed some of the true wonders of nature, including both living (bison, prairie dogs, etc.) and scenic (the ND Badlands, Big Horn Mountains, Devils Tower, etc.)

I had fun working with Animal and felt the love and wonder of children and adults, both.

How can one see and experience any of those things and not be changed?

I’ve taken somewhere in the neighborhood of 800+ pics. I’m going to be awhile working on them, but I’ll share, and maybe you can get some idea of what I saw.

And so ends this Great Adventure. May there be many more.

In (and around) the shining water

DAY 14

Awakened by the noise of tourists; radios, gunning motors, loud talking. Philistines!

Our next destination is the South Dakota Badlands, but we’re not set in stone as to where exactly we’re going there.

I will now sing the praises of GPS; there are incredibly long stretches of no interests (unless you’re into black angus ranches) along this route. The GPS actually gave me hope that there was something on the end of this by letting me know that in () miles there would actually be something.

Animal spotted a pronghorn. Kewl!

Sadly we’ve lot yet another quail. He died in my hands. RIP dude.

The scenery has changed again, and we can see, far off in the distance what is unmistakably smoke from a massive fire.

 ...

We have now reached the park area and have been told that the smoke we saw is near Pringle, and it is not contained, at all.

I was about to drive past Sylvan Lake which is man made, but Animal wanted to go swimming. So we parked, changed into our suits and walked over to where there were loads of families with screaming children, barbeque grills, and beer. Despite signs clearly stating that jumping from the rocks was strictly prohibited kids and adults were doing it anyway. (Tourists! Feh!!)

Dropping towels and shoes on the shore we went in.

OMG! That water was COLD!!! It actually took my breath away. But I got used to it (kinda) and started to swim. Then I decided I needed to see so went back to get my glasses, went back in the water and just did breast or side strokes to the little rock island several yards off shore.

Animal is part mermaid and did a lot more swimming than I did. I swam back to a different part of shore and started investigating the rocks. When she got out we spontaneously started following the path that led around the lake (it’s a small lake). 

Every few feet I would find a rock I just Had to pick up. I’m a sucker for quartz, and it was everywhere. There were also flakes of mica on the ground and in the water and the sun hitting it would just gleam. Fortunately I had brought my binocular case (sans binocular). I needed it.

Along our hike we ran into a group of (cute) boy hikers that alerted us to the fact that there was tourmaline in certain areas. We found several good specimens although finding an intact spear was rare. Mostly got chunks embedded in the quartz.

My bag was almost completely full by the time we got back to the van.

As usual we went (still on the trail but away from the majority of other hikers) looking for places where others were not and found some incredibly beautiful little out of the way places.

I will reiterate that I’ve got massive amounts of pictures.

We got a look at the actual dam that created the lake. It’s a small thing, mostly just a concrete wall between two very tall boulders, but it’s enough to create the lake, and unlike some this one was an improvement for the area.

So despite my lack of expectation, Sylvan Lake was another incredible adventure.

Into the car again we headed up the road to the Needles. They are an incredible rock formation (please – what isn’t around here) but more exciting was the one-lane tunnel you had to drive through to get to them. Hard to describe so I’ll insert what’s in the brochure. “As part of the Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway, the Needles Highway stretches 14 miles through granite structures and pine covered mountains. Needle’s Eye is one of the most memorable granite needles along the drive, with its signature ‘eye’ formed by countless years of rain, ice and wind.”

On the way down spotted the fire smoke again. We could actually smell and see the smoke, even though it was miles away. (It had a nice mesquite scent. Would’ve been enjoyable but for the reality of people endangering their lives putting the fire out. Btw, I actually thanked a few of the firefighters who were on break for their work.)

When we stopped at the information center we were told this was the Myrtle fire and it was, maybe 5 percent contained. Also, there was an extreme thunderstorm warning out for the area we were in.

The day was getting prematurely gray and the storm was chasing us as we came back out on the prairie. The road we got on ran perpendicular and I can honestly say I’ve never seen clouds like that before. The rain angled downward and it looked like a giant mushroom. The lightning was incredible. Since we were on flat plain you could see everything for miles and the bolts were striking downward, sideways, and even coming from a cloud and jumping to another in a jagged ‘w’.

To my right as I watched I actually saw smoke starting to rise in two places. The longer I watched the bigger the smoke plume. At one point I actually saw the orange flames. They were HUGE! But happily I think the storm put the fire out before it got completely out of control. I saw the smoke die down and dissipate. Whew.

I forgot to mention that at the info center Animal and I decided that we were both “full” and that it was now time to start home, even though there was still plenty that we could’ve done. But both of us had had some extremely profound experiences that needed processing and we were ready.

We drove as far as we could (to Sioux Falls) then got a hotel and crashed.

All the peeps left are still with us. YAY!

The Mountain, the Birds, and the Stars

DAY 13

Got out of the hotel around 9:30am heading for Devils Tower. Along the way we lost another quail. <sigh>

This part of the country is rolling hills, sure, but ultimately boring.

Coal mining here.

Just got into Moorcroft, which is the biggest town near DT. I feel like I’m making a pilgrimage. This one feels powerful even from a distance.

Just saw a pronghorn grazing by the side of the road. Kewl!

A lot of dead trees; evidence of old forest fires. The fire hazard scale is at its highest right now – in the red. Signs abound cautioning against throwing cigarettes or matches out of your car.

We see the tower off in the distance, a lone and very eccentric structure out here. There are other outcroppings but nothing quite like it.

…

Devil’s Tower is magnificent. It would be even more magnificent if there weren’t so many loudmouth tourists hanging around. Interestingly, there have, apparently, always been tourists here.  The natives visited and used it as a landmark, but didn’t hang around much. The white settlers even treated it (mostly) with respect. It has been, and will always be, a place to revere.

You can’t help but amazed at the sheer majesty of this piece of rock thrusting out of the ground. (It kind of looks like an incredibly large petrified tree stump.) While Yellowstone was our first national park, Devils Tower was our first natural national monument (thank you Teddy Roosevelt, again.)

 For those who don’t know, the geologic story is that there was an intrusion of magma from deep in the earth that never erupted (thus magma rather than lava). Over time the magma cooled and started fracturing.  The Belle Fourche River (pronounced ‘fish’ and meaning ‘beautiful fork’ in French) carved away at the landscape, slowly revealing what was to become the tower. There are very few of these types of geologic intrusions in the world.

Another amazing factoid is that the top of the tower used to be under miles of earth. Now it’s the tallest thing in sight.

No wonder the aliens in the movie used it as a landmark. Everyone else did. (And no, there have been no recorded sightings of UFO’s around the tower. What a shame L

Right now I’m sitting at the ladies latrine writing this while the battery is charging on the computer. About 5 feet away is a small bird sitting on the ground staring at me. At the campsite there was a robin sitting on the grill that didn’t move for at least 10 minutes, and I got within feet of it. In the tree above Animals’ bedding, a dove hung out for an extended time.

Only the prairie dogs seem to be skittish around people.

Btw, the little bird is apparently a new fledgling. He’s flown off now.

In the distance vultures are circling the tower. On the electric line above me the birds are blue (not sad - the color.) There are also some blackish birds with white spots. I’ll check out what they all are later.

Sad news; due to an unfortunate circumstance another quail has died, and we nearly lost another due to the heat. So now we are at five.

We are camping at the monument tonight; Animal outside and me in the van. (Yes, I’m still a wuss).

Even though there’s a good breeze we’re going to wait until after 8pm to do the hike. Hopefully most of the tourists will be gone.

Much as I’m glad we’ve come here, I’m sorry that it is one of the more popular destinations. The other places we’ve visited had very few people, and we were able to listen to nature rather than voices and machinery.

…

We did the right thing to wait. When we got to the parking lot only a few cars were there and very few people were setting off. We got to a split in the trail, and while everyone else went to the right we took the left-hand fork. On occasion we would run into people coming from the opposite direction and would nod in acknowledgement, but mostly it was quiet, which is what I was hoping for.

One other thing I had hoped for but had not known if it would be possible was a chance to actually touch the rock face. I got my opportunity, and I must say it was akin to a religious experience (another one! LOL)

(I cannot stress enough that if you are, at all, interested in nature, you MUST see this!)

Since we started so late we ended the hike at the very edge of full darkness, but the trail was clearly marked so no possibility of getting lost.

We drove back to the campsite and parked the van so I could see the mountain from inside. It was a moonless night but the sky was clear. The Milky Way was more evident than I’ve ever witnessed it before. We saw a few meteors zip by as well as a satellite or two. The mountain itself was a black silhouette, clearly outlined. And up on the face you could see the lights of crazy people who were ascending or descending in the dark. (Insanity – thy name is rock climber.)

Our campsite was only yards away from the Belle Fourche river. A. found her way to it and took a swim. I sat by it for a brief time but the mountain chill (I got cold!) finally drove me into the van. I went to sleep with the van door open watching the progression of the Big Dipper as it wheeled around the mountaintop.

Magic.