It’s been a quiet winter here in southern Utah, which is not at all a bad thing. Much as I would have liked to, I didn’t jet off to Iceland to view the northern lights. I didn’t hop a plane to South America to visit the ruins of Machu Picchu. For that matter I haven’t even (yet!) driven up to Salt Lake City to visit my nephew and see the mummy exhibit at the Leonardo.
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| desert marigold |
That said, as Planet Earth zooms relentlessly towards its March 20th rendezvous with the vernal equinox I would like to take a few moments to reflect on the fullness of a quiet life.
It seems to be my life’s work to try and clear out the old and make room for the new. I listed some stuff on Craigslist but it hasn’t managed to go anywhere beyond my garage.
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| light fixtures from another era |
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| I never have learned to ski |
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| mirror, mirror… |
The yard sale back in November was a minor success. Folks who stopped to buy my clutter got a good deal and what didn’t sell was carted off to the thrift store (except for my sister’s two kitschy hula lamps which I kept).
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| Sister Mary Jeani, patron saint of November yard sales |
My diminutive Subaru could barely tow a little red wagon on a bet. I sold it and bought my neighbor’s 1998 Chevy Silverado so I could one day (hopefully soon) tow a small travel trailer. It is a real gas guzzler and drives like a tank. When people ask me what kind of mileage it gets, all I can do is whimper unintelligibly.
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| My Chevy Tank |
Living in southern Utah I don’t have far to go to find great places to hike and good friends to hike with.
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| Looking for raptors around Quail Creek reservoir |
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| Church Rocks trail in the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve |
In a perfect world, my volunteering at Zion would lead to a winter ranger gig. Meanwhile, one day each week I staff the visitor center desk and rove the trails.
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| Mule deer scamper across the Virgin River below the Kayenta trail in Zion |
Our community center has great facilities so I joined to use the pool. I haven’t swum laps in decades and discovered, strangely enough, that I had forgotten how to do the freestyle and still breath.
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Fiction, non–fiction, I love it all. Reading is what I do when I’m not doing something else.
I’ve watched some first–rate videos this winter, and some real losers. You never know what you’ll find in thrift stores. I sift through them and am putting together an eclectic collection to transport to Yellowstone when I go back in May.
So there we have it – what I did on my quiet winter vacation! Now, as Planet Earth continues zooming across the vastness of time and space at an average of 67,062 miles per hour toward a rendezvous with its vernal equinox, it appears that I’ve traveled pretty far while staying right at home.
