Cattle

Tucson.

2nd largest city in Arizona.

The 2004 population estimate for Tucson city, Arizona is 512,023.

And yet on our land we deal with free-range cattle.


Does anyone else find this weird?

They roam on land owned by a company set to desecrate the desert with another sub division.

Yes, from time to time they visit. Our yard is home to visitors such as coyotes, hares, birds, ground squirrels and cattle.

Sheesh!

For some reason I find this amusing but baffling. Who do they belong to? When they build that sub division what will happen to the cattle? Will they hide and then come out to haunt the yards of fresh laid sod? I hope they do.

They'll probably just catch them somehow. Hopefully the wrangler charges them an insane amount of money that borders on pornographic... and keeps the cattle.

Trail Dust Concert

It seems that every time I see The Desert Sons and Don Edwards they get better. This time they took it to a new level. The harmonies, performances and arrangements of The Desert Sons were impeccable. When their new disc of all original material is released I have no doubt it will a contender for the best album in it's genre.

Don Edwards has not only gotten better as a singer and performer but the comfort and joy with which he plays his music is unmatched by anyone I have ever seen. I talked to him after the show and told him that, without being too poetic, his performance was like "watching a dream". What I was trying to describe in retrospect, is that what he was doing seemed to transcend the reality in which he performed it.

I asked him if he had experienced a "deepening of faith" recently. He said not so much a deepening of faith as just really appreciating and enjoying everything more as he was getting older....especially the songs he sings. He said that the songs he does are connected to something real and not songs that were designed to make money. So, songs are now being rediscovered and enjoyed like never before.

It shows. Don't miss a chance to see this man or The Desert Sons.

http://donedwardsmusic.com/

http://members.tripod.com/~Desert_Sons/

Odd Is Good

It has been one of those really weird days where too many things were just not normal. Take a look at this picture my wife sent (copyright photographybyfaith). It'll fit into my story later.

First off, I woke up feeling relatively rested even though I got to bed late. What's the deal with that?

Second, my snooze alarm failed somehow. No idea why. I am usually on my way to work before daybreak. I was awoken again by sunlight coming under the bedroom blinds. So other than the fact the Lord had blessed me with one more day it wasn't a good sign for my schedule.

Third, for the first time in a...well, for the first time due to some improvements around the house it is now nicer than ever. My wife is mostly to credit and has been really working hard on the improvements. Last night I stayed up late to help her. Help her and watch the last half of American Idol.

Forth, there were a couple accidents on the highway in different spots and it was backed up farther than I could see. I had to get off the highway and take side-streets. I think I ran into every red light, every school cross walk, every cop scaring people in front of me into going 5 mph under the speed limit, every pedestrian crossing that needed stopping for and every service truck that was going slow to make sure they could find their next turn.

Patience. Patience. Patience. I sang along with some cd's and listened to talk radio some.

Fifth, with so much extra time on my hands I figured this was a great time to call Verizon to see if they offered wireless internet at my address. Laughing are you? Oh, so you've called them before? If only you had been there to stop me. It was one of the worst ways to waste a half hour of my life. Talking to Verizon was like trying to communicate with a stuffed deer head.

Six, I got to work and all these odd things happened with my equipment. It has just been an usual day. Most of this is fun but I won't kid you...I did have certain level of frustration when I got to work. I do try to take a holistic approach to life. These delays and such things do happen for a reason. But sometimes this is hard for me to see.

When I got to work, I found this picture in my email from my wife. She must have known I would need some cheering up. But then again, she likes to make me smile regardless of what is going on.

Seven, we have company from out of town staying with us.

Eight, I work at a job that uses the internet and we were just told not to surf because of a virus issue. Nine, I tried playing a song today on the guitar and figured it out the first time through.

Odd. Just odd.

I really gotta wonder what's for dinner.

Truck Stops

Just the other day my wife and I went to Willcox, AZ to meet a friend from New Mexico. We met at a Super America truck-stop along I10 at about 9:00 in the morning and we had planned to eat breakfast there.

The rules of the regular world don't apply to truck-stops. There really is this micro-culture with truck-stops. It doesn't seem to matter what part of the country you are in because people who frequent truck stops on a semi regular (no pun intended) basis tend to be of the same ilk. I am not saying if that is a good thing or a bad thing, but it's just an observation.

One thing about truck-stop food. It's really "hit or miss". That means that if it doesn't "hit" you you'll wish you would have taken a "miss" on it. Truck-stop food is just generally bad. The service is really, really good which usually makes up for the bad food. No, it's not usual that a cafe may have bad food and great service, but it is the amazing consistency of unrelated truck stops that startles me. You would have thought someone had a franchise on it.

Another thing, the truck stops (the good ones) are dedicated to those 16 wheel knights of the highways. No, that man sleeping by the checkout counter in the recliner is not a homeless person, he just came off a long haul and it's probably better for him sleeping in a truck stop than his sleeper.

(By the way, in a stroke of stupidity, the legislature for the state of California outlawed truckers from running their engines when they are sitting for long periods of time. So, if a trucker wants to keep his truck warm or cool while he is sleeping, for example,...too bad.)

Also, the merchandise choices are outstanding. It is quite possible that one could purchase a torque wrench, tire reflectors, tampons, cigarettes, breakfast and a statue of a wizard holding a crystal ball all on in one visit.

Another world. Always there. Always open.

Juni Fisher and I

My wife took this picture of Juni Fisher and I playing(http://junifisher.net/). This photo says more about the moment than I ever could. Suffice is to say she was showing me how to play a song from her previous release of the same title: Sideshow Romance. I really cannot say enough good things about this lady.


Imagine that! Me speechless!

Cowboy Poetry & Music!

Sierra Vista, AZ was the site for the 14th Cowboy Poets and Music Gathering (http://www.cowboypoets.com/). I was only able to attend the events on Friday. The first event required driving into Ramsey Canyon to the Arizona Folklore Preserve (http://www.arizonafolklore.com/). What a beautiful place!

This was a big surprise because I wasn't expecting to see one of my favorite western artists perform: Dave Stamey (http://www.davestamey.com/) or Juni Fisher (http://www.junifisher.net/). The are both amazing performers and artists of the best kind. Check out their sites and look around. After you have been amazed, let me know and I'll let you know where you can send the fruit basket to thank me.

Besides both doing a short set of about a half hour, they both were gracious enough to show me some things on my guitar. So, sitting on a porch bench with the towering canyon vistas, they both shared a nugget of wisdom with this sprouting guitar player.

The evening's event started with Patty Clayton (http://www.cimarronwind.com/) and beyond that there is really too much else to tell here. Check out the event's site and you'll get a more in-depth overview.

The more I listen to western music the harder and harder it is to listen to country. It's just the guy I am. The music industry would like you to associate country music with cowboys and small towns. Country music more and more strikes me as a McDonalds: there is so much over processing that goes into making those warm fuzzy feelings that it's hard to feel like a better person after you've ingested it. It's just my personal tastes, I know. But more and more country music resembles Las Vegas and L.A. than anything the roots it mocks. OK...enough of my soap-box.