Monthly Archives: September 2016

Safety

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As a woman who travels alone, safety is very important to me.

Of course, most women travel alone sometimes, even if it’s a walk to the corner store or a commute to work. Safety is important to all women, so I share my ideas in hopes they will help women who live in conventional housing, as well as those who live in vans, cars, RVs, etc.

(Yes, I know safety is important to men too. However, since I am a woman, that’s the perspective I’m going to write from.)

When I’m out and about in the world alone, I’m careful about what I wear. Yes, I believe women should be able to wear whatever we want without being harassed. Unfortunately, the reality of women’s lives is that some clothing we may be comfortable in allows some men to feel justified in making rude and lewd comments to us. While I tend to dress very colorfully, I usually wear clothes that cover my body. I wear long hippie-lady skirts and loose shirts that show no cleavage. If I’m wearing a tank top in the privacy of my van, I’ll usually throw on another shirt over it before I go outside. In public, among strangers, I don’t wear booty shorts, miniskirts, or sports bras as outerwear—nothing to give anyone a notion I might be out looking for sex with strangers.

I’m also aware of the how the clothes I’m wearing might help or hinder me if running or fighting in self-defense might be necessary. (My long skirts might not be the best choice in such situations.) I don’t typically wear flip flops unless I’m on my way to the shower. Flip flops or other shoes that could easily slip off my foot could be a hindrance when running from an assailant or kicking an attacker in the knee. I usually wear closed-toe shoes fastened securely to my foot. Since heels could also slow a gal down if she needed to run, I prefer flats.

As women, we are socialized to be “nice.” In a million ways, we’re taught we must smile at men and giggle at even their stupid jokes. We’re taught we need to respond to the overtures of chitchat from strangers. Sure, many men are just trying to be friendly, but too many men think a woman alone must be out looking for a man, and our every smile and giggle is encouragement that he might be the one. I do my best not to give strangers any sort of encouragement. I don’t instigate eye contact or  smile if I don’t feel pretty confident I’m in a safe place, and I’ve almost trained myself not to giggle at stupid jokes. (I love to laugh, but only when a joke is truly funny.) I try to present myself as bland, rather than hostile. I often pretend to think a joker is serious, and I respond seriously to a supposed-to-be-funny-but-not question or comment. In any case, unless I do actually want to spend time with someone, I try not to show any interest. Out in public, I mind my own business and try to appear boring so on one thinks I’m worth paying attention to.

I typically don’t party using alcohol or other drugs, either with strangers or on my own. I’ve very sensitive to alcohol and other drugs—after one drink, I find it difficult to make wise decisions. I might party a little if I were with trusted friends, but I usually feel as if I need to be at the top of my game—alert, aware—and I don’t necessarily feel that way if I’m chemically altered. Better to be boring than out of control.

Whenever I’m spending the night in my van in a place among strangers (Wal-Mart, truck stops, public land), I don’t go traipsing around outside in the middle of the night. Once I’m in the van with the curtains closed, I’m in for the night. I have my pee bucket and supplies for a defecation emergency, so I don’t have to go anywhere in the dark. I don’t know if nighttime is actually any more dangerous than daytime, but darkness feels scarier, so I plan to stay in during the wee hours.

Another precaution I take, whether I’m traveling or staying in one place for a time is checking in often with a trusted friend. I text this friend every day when I have cell service, even if just to say good morning. When I’m traveling, I let her know where I’m spending the night. If she doesn’t hear from me and can’t reach me the next day, she’ll have an idea of where to start looking for me.  If I know I’m going to be away from cell phone service for a while, I alert her so she won’t worry when she doesn’t hear from me.

Body language is important. Although my posture is terrible, I try to remember to not to walk like an easy mark. I do my best to stand and walk with confidence: head high, back straight, no slouching.

Sometimes making eye contact with a person invites further—unwanted—interaction. Years ago in a women’s group, I learned a way to avoid eye contact without looking weak. The woman leading the group told us that looking at the ground to avoid eye contact makes a person seem—and feel—passive. She suggested we keep our head and eyes up with avoiding meeting a stranger’s gaze. When I use this technique, I feel as if I’m sliding my eyes past the eyes I’m trying to avoid. I continue to feel confident while conveying that I’m not interested in a conversation.

“Situational awareness” is a phrase tossed around a lot these days. The concept is not new and has other names, such as “paying attention” and “getting your head out of your ass.” (The latter was a favorite of my father.) Situational awareness basically means knowing what’s going on around you and doing your best to avoid sketchy/scary/dangerous situations. In order to maintain situational awareness, I avoid walking around absorbed in my phone or wearing ear buds that block out the sounds of the world around me.

I recommend reading this article about situational awareness to learn more about staying alert in order to stay safe.

Our society tells women the world is a dangerous place and we should be scared all the time. While the world can be dangerous, it’s no fun (and probably not healthy) to focus constantly on being scared. Knowing I’m taking precautions to keep myself safe helps me overcome my fears and enjoy my opportunities to travel and visit new places.

What do you do to stay safe, either while traveling or while staying in a conventional dwelling?

More Necklaces

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Today I am sharing with you more of the necklaces I’ve made with my own little hands. All of these necklaces are for sale. I did the hemp work, but I did not make the pendants unless otherwise noted.

The necklace on the left is made from natural hemp and wooden beads. It is 21 inches long. It costs $11, including shipping. The middle necklaces features a goldstone bear on pink and black hemp. It is 14 inches long, and costs $11, including shipping. The necklace on the right is made from black and natural hemp. The carved bone pendant features an ankh. It is 20 inches long and costs $11, including shipping costs.

The necklace on the left is made from natural hemp and wooden beads. It is 21 inches long. It costs $10, including shipping. The middle necklaces features a goldstone bear on pink and black hemp. It is 14 inches long, and costs $10, including shipping. The necklace on the right is made from black and natural hemp. The carved bone pendant features an ankh. It is 20 inches long and costs $10, including shipping costs.

 

The 16 inch necklace on the left is made from black and green hemp and has a simple pendent I made. The stone is serpentine, which is believed to help one feel more in control of one's spiritual life and the aid meditation. It costs $16, including postage. The necklace in the middle is 20 inches long and made from black and purple hemp. The stone is amethyst, which is believed to support sobriety; guard against panic attacks; and dispels anger, rage, fear, and anxiety. It costs $18, including postage. The necklace on the right is 20 inches long and made from brown and black hemp. The pendant and the accent stones are carnelian which is believed to stimulate creativity, calm anger, promote positive life choices and remove fear of death. This necklace costs $16, including postage costs.

The 16 inch necklace on the left is made from black and green hemp and has a simple pendent I made. The stone is serpentine, which is believed to help one feel more in control of one’s spiritual life and to aid meditation. The wire is copper. The necklace costs $16, including postage. The necklace in the middle is 20 inches long and made from black and purple hemp. The stone is amethyst, which is believed to support sobriety; guard against panic attacks; and dispel anger, rage, fear, and anxiety. It costs $18, including postage. The necklace on the right is 20 inches long and made from brown and black hemp. The pendant and the accent stones are carnelian which is believed to stimulate creativity, calm anger, promote positive life choices, and remove fear of death. I turned this stone into a pendant using copper wire. This necklace costs $16, including postage costs.

 

This necklace is made from natural hemp. The frog pendant and the accent stones are made from carved bone. It is 16 inches long and costs $11, including postage.

This necklace is made from natural hemp. The frog pendant and the accent stones are made from carved bone. It is 16 inches long and costs $10, including postage.

 

I made the pendant on the necklace on the left. The hemp is purple and black. The stone is a double quartz crystal. Quartz is believed to be a powerful healer and energy amplifier that unlocks memory. This necklace is 21 inches long and costs $18, including shipping. The middle necklaces features a skull pendant carved from smoked yak bone with hematite accent beads. Hematite is believed to dissolve negativity and enhance willpower. The pink and blue hemp portion is 17 inches long. The cost, including shipping is $18. The necklace on the right features a pendant I made. The stone is rose quartz from South Dakota. Rose quartz is the stone of unconditional love and infinite peace. It is believed to encourage self-forgiveness. This necklace is 20 inches long and features pink and black hemp. The cost is $15, including shipping.

I made the pendant on the necklace on the left using copper wire. The hemp is two shades of purple. The stone is a double quartz crystal. Quartz is believed to be a powerful healer and energy amplifier that unlocks memory. This necklace is 21 inches long and costs $18, including shipping. The middle necklaces features a skull pendant carved from smoked yak bone and an hematite accent bead. Hematite is believed to dissolve negativity and enhance willpower. The pink and blue hemp portion is 17 inches long. The wire is copper. The cost of the necklace, including shipping, is $18. The necklace on the right features a pendant I made using copper wire. The stone is rose quartz from South Dakota. Rose quartz is the stone of unconditional love and infinite peace. It is believed to encourage self-forgiveness. This necklace is 20 inches long and features pink and black hemp. The cost is $15, including shipping.

 

Both of these necklaces are made from natural hemp and feature pendants I made using copper wire and white onyx stones. (I did not carve the stones or drill the holes in them. I used stones that had already been shaped and drilled to make pendants.) White onyx is believed to aid in learning lessons. It's also believed to promote vigor and give strength. The necklace with the star pendant is 18 inches long. The necklace with the moon pendant is 15 inches long. The stones on both pendant are quite large. Each necklace costs $11, including shipping.

Both of these necklaces are made from natural hemp and feature pendants I made using copper wire and white onyx stones. (I did not carve the stones or drill the holes in them. I used stones that had already been shaped and drilled to make pendants.) White onyx is believed to aid in learning lessons. It’s also believed to promote vigor and give strength. The necklace with the star pendant is 18 inches long. The necklace with the moon pendant is 15 inches long. The stones on both pendant are quite large. Each necklace costs $11, including shipping.

 

These two necklaces feature dice I drilled. The necklaces made from black hemp is 15 inches long. The necklace made from natural hemp is 20 inches long and has black and white accent beads.

These two necklaces feature dice I drilled. The necklaces made from black hemp is 15 inches long. The necklace made from natural hemp is 20 inches long and has black and white accent beads. Each die has the number 5 front and center, but it may be possible to move the die to feature another number. Each of these necklaces cost $10, including shipping. I have other drilled dice, so I could possibly do a custom order of a necklace with a die on it.

 

I took all of the photos in this post.

Closed Waterfall

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The following is an actual conversation I had with an actual family in the parking lot on a Saturday afternoon:

Mother: Is there any way to get to the closed waterfall?

Me: Which waterfall is that?

Daughter: The one with the “closed” sign.

Me: Well, if there’s a “closed” sign, I’m pretty sure that means it’s closed.

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Good grief! I’m not exactly sure how even the Forest Service can “close” a waterfall, but a sign reading “closed” is a pretty good indicator the Forest  Service doesn’t want people hanging out in that location. Even if I knew what waterfall the women were talking about (which I didn’t at the time and still don’t), and I knew another way to get to it, I’m pretty sure my job description does not include  telling tourist how to circumvent Forest Service closings.

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I took all three photos of waterfalls in this post. They were all open when I took the photos.

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Do You Have a Band-Aid?

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It doesn’t happen every day or even every week, but it happens often enough to be on my mind. I’ll be working in the parking lot, and someone asks me, Do you have a Band-Aid?

The person asking has never seemed impoverished. Brown and White Bear Plush ToyThe person asking has always looked–if not rich–comfortable. The vehicle is chugging along, and the people are on a road trip, after all. I suspect these people have resources. I suspect these people have greater resources than I do.

I also suspect the people who ask for Band-Aids think the company I work for has issued to me a first aid kit for use in the parking lot. This is not so! The company I work for has given me absolutely no first aid supplies. I believe this means the company I work for does not consider distribution of adhesive bandages or other first aid items part of my job. If the company I work for doesn’t expect me to hand out Band-Aids why do visitors expect it from me? (From now on, when visitors make this request, I’m going to say, No, the company I work for doesn’t provide me with any.)

I believe there are a couple of reason the company I work for doesn’t provide me with Band-Aids or other such things to give to visitors.

The first reason is probably money. The company doesn’t want to pay for first aid supplies for camp hosts to hand out for free. If the company won’t pay for something, why should I? Other camp hosts buy air fresheners for their restrooms and loan their personal blankets to cold campers, but not me. I won’t even use my tape to anchor Forest  Service signs flapping in the wind. Why should I spend my minimum wage dollars on things the large corporation running the show doesn’t think are necessary? (I have bought Sharpies to write on day passes and dry erase markers to write on the campground’s plastic reservation signs because the washable crayons my boss supplied me with turned out to be useless. I spent my money on those items to make my own life easier.)

I suspect the second reason the company I work for doesn’t provide me with first aid supplies to hand out is because of liability issues. I’m pretty sure handing a bleeding person a bandage does not constitute practicing medicine without a license, but that doesn’t mean some yo-yo won’t try to sue anyway. If the company I work for thinks it’s best not to get involved, why should I? (Well, yes, because sometimes getting involved is the right thing to do. And I would get involved if it seemed necessary and right under certain conditions.) I’m not a trained first responder. I haven’t taken a first aid class since the last century. I have not been advised on the proper distribution of Band-Aids. Would the company I work for support me if I did flub up first aid to a visitor and said visitor decided to sue?

Honestly, the main reason I don’t want to provide Band-Aids to any stranger who asks is because I don’t remember being appointed Band-Aid provider to the world. Folks on road trips–particularly a camping trip–should have a few adhesive bandages (or better yet, a comprehensive first aid kit) with them. It’s not like folks who ask me for Band-Aids are living out of backpacks with limited storage space. (Any backpackers who ask me for Band-Aids can have as many of mine as they need.) There’s plenty of room in most vehicles for plenty of adhesive bandages.

Let’s take some personal responsibility folks. Throw a few bandages in the glove box.

Photo courtesty of https://www.pexels.com/photo/brown-and-white-bear-plush-toy-42230/.

 

Picnic Pavilion

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When I was homeless, I lived in a picnic pavilion at a rest stop for two months. By lived in, I really mean slept in. The rest area attendant arrived at 8am, so I left well before he started work. I usually woke with the first light of the sun, rolled up my sleeping bag, put on my shoes, and walked out on a nearby trail. The trail went past a tree, all alone in the high desert. I usually stopped at the tree, rolled out my sleeping bag on the ground under its branches, took off my shoes again, and stretched out to nap for another couple of hours.

Not only did I not want the rest area attendant to find me, accuse me of living there, and call the cops, I didn’t want any civilian bystander to call the cops on me either. Best to not have anyone see me in the rest area during the day, which is why I left as soon as I had enough light to see the path.

I suppose I could have spent my nights under the tree, but I was afraid I’d encounter a rattlesnake or an unsavory human out there. I felt safer in the civilization of the rest area, with its lights and flush toilets. In retrospect, I don’t know how much safer I was in the rest area Babylon.

The rest area attendant got off work at 5pm. Sometime after that, I’d go to my “apartment,” the picnic pavilion which opened toward the natural attraction tourists came to see. The other pavilions opened toward the roadway running through the rest area. Anyone sleeping on the concrete floor of one of those pavilions would be easily spotted by cars driving through at night. Because my pavilion didn’t open toward the roadway, I could sleep between its low stone back wall and the back bench of the concrete picnic table, and no one driving through would see me.

affection, art, backlitThe rest area was open all night. People could go there to look at the natural attraction 24 hours a day, any day of the week. It wasn’t unusual for people to sleep there in their cars. Others pulled in to use the restrooms in the middle of the night. Sometimes people partied there, drinking alcohol and taking who-knows-what drugs. And I’m pretty sure couples came there to “smooch” (my euphemism for anything from making out to oral to full-on intercourse).

Lovers were attracted to “my” pavilion for the same reason I was: it offered just a little bit more privacy.

I never rolled out my sleeping bag before dark. I didn’t want to be spotted sleeping (translation: living) there. I’d read a borrowed book or a newspaper fished from a trashcan and wait for darkness to descend. Often, I’d simply look out at the spectacular view. Once it was adequately dark, I’d roll out my sleeping bag, position my backpack on the ground within arm’s reach, take off my shoes, and snuggle down for sleep. Once I lay down, I didn’t pop my head up to see what was going on, for fear someone would notice me and wonder what I was doing on the ground behind the picnic table.

I don’t know how late it was the first time a couple invaded my space. It was dark during a time when days were long, so it had to be after 9pm. I had been on the brink of sleep when the people sat on the picnic table. Of course, they didn’t know they’d invaded my space. I was so discreet, they hadn’t even realized I was there.

I didn’t know what to do. I’d heard from several single sign-flying and hitchhiking women that sometimes people worry about women in such situations and call the cops to do a welfare check. I didn’t want these people to call the cops because they were worried about me. I wasn’t running from the law, but I didn’t want to be hassled by the police, didn’t want to be told I couldn’t sleep at the rest area any longer or that I needed to move on out of town. Better not to interact with the cops at all.

I knew the longer I waited to say something to the couple, the more awkward it was going to be when they discovered me. (I never doubted one of them would notice me eventually.) I suppose I could have pretended to be asleep, but what if they started making noise impossible to sleep through? Then I’d have to “wake up,” and what if they had their clothes off?

So I sat up and said something like Hi. I’m just sleeping here. (I don’t remember my actual words, but I was trying to convey I’m harmless. I’m fine. I was here first.)

The woman screamed. It was a loud, piercing, blood-curdling scream. So much for discretion.

I started apologizing. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.

Then one of my worries came true. The woman started asking me if I was ok. Are you ok? she kept asking me.

I tried to assure her I was fine. I told her I was just sleeping. I told her everything was good.

Are you ok? Are you ok? she asked again and again.

I wanted to say, I was ok, before you woke me up. I was ok before you screamed. Instead I just assured her I was currently fine.

Finally they left. I don’t know where they went to have sex (maybe the car they’d arrived in?), but the cops didn’t bother me that night, so I guess I’d convinced them they didn’t need to worry about me.

The next time a couple tried to use my picnic pavilion for their shenanigans, it was truly the middle of the night, and at least the guy seemed drunk. When I sat up and told them I was sleeping there, neither of them seemed worried about me or upset in any way or even vaguely surprised. These people had obviously seen a lot in their lives.

I could tell they didn’t want to leave, but they also respected the fact that I’d gotten there first. So they left, but they didn’t go far. They simply walked out of the picnic pavilion and sat down on the ground right next its wall. I could hear every word they said! (If only I could remember their every word. If only I had taken notes.)

The woman (who seemed significantly younger than the man) talked and talked and talked, mostly about her unhappy life. (It’s just as well that I don’t remember the details. She probably wouldn’t want me to repeat her stories, although I wouldn’t feel too bad about doing so, since she knew I was right there the whole time.)

The man? Well, what he said (in drunken repetition) to the woman boiled down to this: I want to be your friend. But I also–if you would like–want to make love to you.

She didn’t fall for his line while within my hearing. Maybe she was hoping her litany of woes would cool his ardor. Maybe she simply needed someone to listen.

As for me, I was wishing I couldn’t hear them. I really just wanted to go to sleep, not listen to an unhappy woman and a horny man.

I thought about calling out, I can hear you!

I thought about calling out, Shut the fuck up! I’m trying to sleep!

In the end, I said nothing. I didn’t want an altercation, especially with someone who was drunk. I only wanted to sleep. I comforted myself with the knowledge that I could sleep for a few more hours under my tree in the morning.

Photo courtesy of https://www.pexels.com/photo/affection-art-backlit-couple-556662/.

Thank God You Are Here

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Many people are frustrated and nervous by the time they make it to the parking lot. They’ve been driving for hours, much of the way with very little signage. Their GPS quit working quite some time back. They have no map or only the very small map on their phone or a map no one in the vehicle knows how to read. They don’t know where they are. They don’t know if they are close to their destination. They haven’t seen a gas station or a fast food restaurant in a really long time.

Some people are absolutely confused when they pull into the parking lot. More than once, I’ve asked drivers Are you here for the trail? and have received I don’t know! in response.

I’ve had people yell at me for the lack of signs. I try to remember these people (usually front seat passengers) are scared and tired (and probably hungry) and feeling out of control. Surely they don’t really think I stole road signs in order to make their trip more stressful?

One morning an obviously rented motor home pulled into the parking lot. My co-worker approached the driver’s side window. The driver, a bald man with an accent from somewhere outside the U.S. A. exclaimed loudly enough for me to hear ten feet away, Thank God you are here!

My co-worker, cucumber cool, asked, And why is that?

It was the typical story. They’d been driving a long time. They saw no signs. The GPS wasn’t working. They weren’t sure they were where they wanted to be. Thank God there was someone in the parking lot to tell them they had arrived and to assure them they were where they wanted to be.

I think it’s wonderful to be appreciated.

I made sure to tell my boss how happy that man was to see my co-worker standing in the parking lot.

Now whenever my co-worker is particularly helpful, to me or a visitor, I exclaim to him, Thank God you are here!

Book Review–Live Alone and Like It: The Classic Guide for the Single Woman

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[amazon template=image&asin=0446178225]Many years ago, I reviewed books (and sometimes products) for a feminist blog. The woman managing the project would send out a list of available items each month, and all of the reviewers would vie for the best things. One of the books I ended up with was a reprint of advice for single women written by Marjorie Hillis in the 1930s. Today I’ll share that review.

Potential readers should know two things about this book. First, the author was an editor for Vogue. Second, it was a bestseller in 1936. Those two facts should hint at for whom it was written and warn that much of it is outdated.

This book’s mixed messages caused me to have mixed feelings about it while reading. On the one hand, it empowers women by telling them they can live alone and not only survive, but also thrive. On the other hand, it implies time and again that any woman living alone is only waiting for something better (a man) to come along.

The most interesting part of this manual is its historical perspective on single women. It is evidence that women did live on their own – even in 1936. Conservative propaganda would have us believe that prior to the tumultuous 1960s, all women were either married, living with relatives, or boarding in some sort of respectable dormitory. This book proves that women were on the road to liberation long before the women’s movement of the 1970s.

Less positive is the class assumption the author makes about “live-aloners” (as single women living by themselves became known after the publication of this book). For example, live-aloners apparently want, need, and are able to afford a maid (sometimes a “colored” maid), at least on occasion. There is no mention of who does the cleaning and serving at the maid’s house if she should happen to live alone. In any case, this maid business shows the target audience is women aspiring to or firmly entrenched in the upper classes.

Equally problematic are assertions made about men, especially regarding money. “There are still a few chivalrous gentlemen who believe that the man should be the provider,” the author states on page 101, and “the men guests always pay” for taxis to and from the theater, even when the single woman does the inviting, she says on page 46. Such ideas may have been prevalent sixty years ago, but hardly seem productive or true in the twenty-first century.

Sure, some to the advice given in this book is helpful: Don’t feel sorry for yourself. Make your home pleasant and comfortable. Have several passionate interests. Friends are important. Live within your means. Save some money. However, this advice seems helpful to most human being, whether female or male, single or married, living alone or with other people.

Practical and specific guidance for women wanting to learn how to be content living alone would have been more useful. Truly helpful topics might include securing doors and windows against intruders, repairing clogged plumbing, negotiating with a landlord, and recognizing symptoms that indicate it’s time to see the doctor. Instead, the reader is advised to invite people over who live in worse places than she does, told how many negligees and bed-jackets a woman living alone should own (two and four, respectively), and counseled that a woman who is too sick “to fix yourself up” is “better off in a small hospital ward” than home alone. This advice is useless to most contemporary women who live solo.

I don’t understand why this book was reprinted. Most of the advice beyond basics that apply to nearly everyone seems impractical and obsolete. I can only suggest this book to people who want to have a good laugh and then contemplate how far women who live by themselves have come.

Love Story

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The parking lot had been surprisingly slow for the Friday of Labor Day weekend. My coworker left early, and I was handling the job alone.

In the middle of the afternoon, a pickup truck pulled in. I approached the driver, an older man with a short white beard and longish white hair. I asked him if he were there for the trail, and he said he was. I told him about the $5 parking fee. As he fumbled for his wallet, he began to speak. He was wearing a hat advertising his status as a veteran of the U.S. Army, so I thought he was going to ask for a discount. Instead, he said, My wife came up here with her sister. She wanted me to see the trees. She passed away in July…At that point he choked up, and tears sprung to my eyes too.

You don’t have to pay, I told him. There’s no parking fee.

He drove around the loop and parked near the front of the lot. I watched him out of the corner of my eye, but I didn’t know what to say to him. I didn’t want to be weird or intrude upon his grief.

The man had to be pushing 70, but he walked toward the trail briskly, with purpose.

When I saw him exit the trail, I decided to check in with him, find out how he was doing. I stood and approached him as he walked into the parking lot.

How was it? I asked.

He let out a joyful yell. Woo-wee! echoed through the trees.

I love that sound, he said and smiled at me. He said the walk through the trees had done him good.

Then he asked if I had change for a twenty, said he wanted to pay the parking fee, said he liked to contribute and support his country. As I gave him change, he said his wife had always wanted him to see the giant sequoias on the trail where I work. Then he was crying, and he said, I don’t know what I’m going to do without her.

I started crying too, and said, Sir, can I give you a hug?

I certainly don’t go around hugging strangers, especially strange men, especially while I’m at work, but I could tell this man was hurting, and I just wanted to offer him some human kindness. He turned to me, and we embraced as tourists passed us on their way to the trail. It wasn’t a long hug, but it was a good one, sustaining, and full of comfort and light. It wasn’t one bit weird, which may be surprising, but was wonderful.

After we hugged, he told me his love story.

His wife of twenty-five years had divorced him, and he was devastated. He didn’t know what to do. He started drawing and found himself drawing the same face over and over again. His mother saw him drawing the face and asked him who she was. He said he didn’t know. His mom said she knew someone he needed to meet. She introduced him to a woman she’d met at the grocery store and given a ride to in the back of her pickup truck. The woman’s name was Rose. Hers was the face he’d been drawing. He married her two months later. They were together for eighteen years.

It wasn’t easy at first, he told me. They had different ideas, differences of opinion, different ways of doing things. But we never fought, he told me, and we never went to bed mad. They always talked it out and worked it out.

We were almost always together, he said. They lived in a remote mountain area, and as a safety precaution, even when they worked on different projects, they tried to stay within each other’s sight, just in case something happened to one of them.

And now Rose was gone.

There is no doubt in my mind this man loved that woman intensely and completely, but in a way that was healthy and kind.

That’s the kind of love I hope to know before I leave this life.

Bong

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It was Saturday afternoon, and my co-worker had finished his shift and left. The parking lot wasn’t too busy, until a caravan of seven vehicles arrived.

I told the lead guy where the group could probably park together. I told him they could all pay me the fee after they parked. As the other cars pulled up to me, I gave each driver the rundown: Park with your friends. Give me $5 before you go on the trail.

The group was a mix of families in big pickup trucks and SUVs and young guys in little sports cars.

The fourth or fifth vehicle in the caravan was a little sports car. The driver rolled down the window, and I started talking, but I was immediately distracted by the bong in the passenger’s lap.

I’m not going to pretend I’ve never been in a vehicle with a bong. I won’t pretend people didn’t hit that bong while the vehicle was in motion. I won’t even pretend the driver didn’t hit that bong a time or two while piloting the vehicle. But we had the sense to put the bong away when we approached federal land, especially if the driver were about to talk to someone working on that federal land.

Not this guy. His bong was out, and he was proud. The bong protruded like a big glass erection from between his legs. I could barely believe it. I was so surprised, my words got all stuttery, and I could hardly give the driver my speech about where to park and when and where to pay the $5.

After I’d finished speaking to the driver, I leaned down further, to speak past the driver and address the passenger.

I don’t care about that, I said, not wanting to say the word bong and counting on the passenger to understand to what I was referring. But you are on federal land. If a ranger comes along, he might not be happy to see that.

The passenger thanked me. They’d forgotten, he said.

I didn’t ask, but I wondered, Forgotten what? Forgotten he had a bong wedged between his thighs? Forgotten thatShallow Focus Photography of Cannabis Plant the bong wasn’t invisible? Forgotten they were on federal land? Forgotten the feds are still opposed to the possession and use of marijuana?

Photo courtesy of https://www.pexels.com/photo/shallow-focus-photography-of-cannabis-plant-606506/.

Happy Birthday, Mickey Hart!

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There’s another Grateful Dead birthday to celebrate this week: today is the birthday of Mickey Hart, one of the broken drumstick, close-up, darkDead’s two drummers.

According to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mickey_Hart,

Mickey Hart (born Michael Steven Hartman, September 11, 1943) is an American percussionist and musicologist. He is best known as one of the two drummers of the rock band Grateful Dead. He was a member of the Grateful Dead from September 1967 to February 1971 and from October 1974 to August 1995. He and fellow Dead drummer Bill Kreutzmann earned the nickname “the rhythm devils”.

Dead.net (http://www.dead.net/band/mickey-hart) says,

Practically born with drumsticks in his hands — both of his parents were champion rudimental (marching band-style) drummers — Mickey Hart committed to percussion from the beginning. After experience in both high school and military (Air Force) marching bands and a brief stint working for his father at a drum shop, he encountered Bill Kreutzmann one night at the Matrix. On September 30, 1967, he sat in with the Dead… and joined the band. His influence over the next year was to push the band into complex, multirhythmic explorations. A student of Ustad Allah Rakah (Ravi Shankar’s tabla player), he added various strains of non-Western music to the Dead’s general atmosphere. Over the years, he has been involved in many musical and archival projects, most notably the band Global Drum Project, and the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress’s “Endangered Music Project.” He is the author of several books, including Drumming at the Edge of Magic and Global Drum Project.

According to the aforementioned Wikipedia article,

Hart joined the Grateful Dead in September 1967 and left in February 1971 when he extricated himself from the band due to conflict between band management and his father.[4] During his sabbatical in 1972 he recorded the album Rolling Thunder. He returned to the Dead in 1974 and remained with the group until their official dissolution in 1995. Collaboration with the remaining members of the Grateful Dead continued under the name “The Dead“..

I’ve never experienced Mickey Hart’s drumming in person, but it’s not too late, right? Maybe I’ll get the chance, somehow…

[amazon template=image&asin=006250374X] Image of drum courtesy of https://www.pexels.com/photo/broken-drumstick-close-up-dark-dirty-241687/.