Meth Lab

The Sound of Joy

It tickles my ears and my mind.

Control Group

The day my Momma stuck it to

the Harper Valley PTA

An Oath to be Believed

Overheard:

I swear by the skin of my dog.

Young Pup

This pup of mine was born ten years ago today.

Happy Birthday to my number one cur!

A Mother Knows

Nature Bats Last

If there is one duality I can embrace, it is the distinction between the world as it is in our heads and how it is, well, in the world, as it is naturally.

The greatest virtue or benefit of working with things, soil, steel, engines, or anything else in the world, is that it can teach the observant that the distinction is real and pernicious.

No matter how wedded we become to them, the world cares not about our ideas about how it is, or less yet, how it should be.  Many, however, fail to appreciate the distinction.  When things do not work "as they should" blame must be cast on enemies of one sort or another.

This is the life within our own heads and it is not real.  Maybe they reflect reality, maybe not.  The feedback we get is the result.  If an idea does not work, it is because the idea does not adequately reflect reality.

There will Come Soft Rains
There will come soft rains and the smell of the ground,
And swallows circling with their shimmering sound;
And frogs in the pools, singing at night,
And wild plum trees in tremulous white,
Robins will wear their feathery fire,
Whistling their whims on a low fence-wire;
And not one will know of the war, not one
Will care at last when it is done.
Not one would mind, neither bird nor tree,
If mankind perished utterly;
And Spring herself, when she woke at dawn,
Would scarcely know that we were gone.

Argos

When Odysseus left home for Troy he left behind a pup.

Twenty-years later Odysseus returns, disguised as a beggar, but faithful Argos recognizes his voice.  After a prick of the ear and a wag of the tail, Argos fades into death.  While the Argos element of the story adds sentiment and flavor to the story he also serves as a symbol of all the opportunities lost in the struggles between sailing off to war and returning from it.

Colleen Myers attempts to catch aspects of this relationship in some of her work.

Argos chases the departing fleet

Faithfully Awaiting his Master's Return

Argos' life departs

It Will not Last

Happy Solstice, enjoy the weather while you can.

It will not last. 

Winter is Coming.

The Rawhide Market

This is a sign that market forces plus consumer education is working.

First Fleet Farm gave their customers a choice between North American and Chinese rawhide.  Now we see the impact of that choice,  they have to cut prices to get rid of the Asian sourced chews.

No new bureaucracy had to be created.

No government funds had to be expended.

No new agency looking for expanded powers or another mission to justify it's budget.

No debt passed off to my children.

Earthbound

Yes, but I think I might stick around (for now).

In Baseball as in Life

"In the end it comes down to throwing one pitch after another and seeing what happens."

Grandpa Tooley

Grandpa

I didn't inherit the hair
or his sense of style,
but I hope I caught a touch
of that genuine smile.

Commitment Issues

I only have room in my life for so much commitment.  Every year I pick up a few commitment points and I save them up for some big purchase.

In my twenties, I used all I had getting married.

In my thirties, I used it all having children.

So I've never had any commitment to spare for a tattoo but, for the first time ever, I have come across a tattoo design I might be able to scrounge up the commitment to have done.

Want

Want More

If one could be designed with Thomas Jefferson, want will morph into need.