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Summer Starting to End on the Farm

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It has been good spending time on the farm. I really had forgotten how quiet and dark it is here. It can actually be a bit unnerving. The leaf doodle bug was put to work in the forest. However, it looks like the car will be going back on the road. We can say it failed field trials,but that would only be partially true. The better utility value at this point is more suited to getting a teenager back and forth from high school. The mycological aspects of the farm did not disappoint. The pics of these shrooms are not photoshopped. The coal stove (very heavy) is loaded on the truck. It will be rebuilt in Georgia if I can save it. Coal stoves are increasingly out of production. When they are gone they are gone. The small wood stove is now in its place. The pic of the red sky in morning was indeed a warning of weather. We had strong storms and tornados in Upstate NY. Although I was travelling much that day in the area, I missed the worst of it.
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I visited a large yellow equipment manufacturer in Illinois last week. Big tires, big iron. My weekend was great. After getting back to base in ATL I went to Missouri. The trip felt like a trip to Brazil. The opportunity to spend a bit of time touring and feeling calm was better than good. It was my first visit to the Gateway Arch in St Louis. I was pleasantly surprised. The architectural aspect was better than I expected. The ride to the top is done in these very small tram cars shaped like cans, perhaps only 4 feet in height. You can feel the arch sway in the wind when you are at the top. The architect was Finnish. Just like Angry Birds. The diner in the picture was very American indeed. It was featured in the film White Palace http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Palace_%28film%29
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I have been in Europe for 11 days, mostly The Netherlands and Finland. Overall, looking ahead, I think I have everyday and evening booked in February. Pic 1. Central Finland in winter at 4:00 in the afternoon. Pic 2. Hints at the fairyland side of Finland from the air. Pic 3. Been on this plane several times now. I like the call sign. "Approach Control, Oh-8 with you at 12500." Pic 4. George Patton's Grave at a US cemetery in Europe. Pic 5. Great Sense of humor in Finland Pic 6. This is the tractor I am getting if I get back to farming. I only got it stuck once on my test drive. Pic 7. Great Architecture feels like putting on a pair of jeans just out of the dryer. Pic 8. Venlo, Netherlands Pic 9. This beer was pretty much unbelievable, the stuff on the side of the glass is known as "Brussels Lace" for good reason. Pic 10. What world heritage site is this? Pic 11. Chocolate! Pic 12. "I am looking for an attractive tariff."
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Skiing in NY

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I am back from NY. I flew up from Georgia and drove my truck down with a load of stuff from the farm. Having "stuff" is fine except it all requires attention especially as you move and more repositories you have. I am sure the day I die it will all be much simpler (at least for me). I did some electrical work to my church. The cat is out of the bag now. More work is sure to come. I went skiing for a couple of days. I am proud of myself and my progress. I can actually ski! Like flying, skiing is a good way to escape. It's hard (and downright unsafe) to think about work pressures when in the air or on the slopes. We saw a number of paraplegics on skis. That is inspiring. The drive back to Georgia was similar to last time I drove down, but this time I noticed minute by minute, mile by mile: The gas getting cheaper (near 4 bucks in NY and near 3 buck in GA) The temperature getting warmer (Teens in NY and 60s in GA) The sky becoming much sunnier The rain and snow stopping ...
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I was talking with a friend of mine in Russia who travels a lot. She firmly agrees that folks in the US are losing freedom everyday and she can make the comparison with their former Soviet Style of government. It really is time to wake up in the USA. Today, US Citizens seem to be more interested in superficial things than some of the fundamentals lots of folks have given their lives for in the past. I was in Kansas this week. Took a nice walk in the mountains, saw some puppies. Here is the New sign for my lake. I am working with the neighbors to improve the access, which is adjacent to my property.
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I finally took a picture of my Georgia house from the air. Taking pictures from the airplane is a bit like fishing when you have a boat.
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It has been cold and crappy here in Duluth. It got down to 30 degrees F last night and cloudy. I seem to have forgotten how much the weather can affect your mood, maybe when I was in NY I blocked it out of my mind. Even though it is the middle of winter we still have planted flowers here. It is good to remember to look at them. Since I spend a lot of my time in South it only seems appropriate that I go on a Skiing trip up North somewhere. It is in the works. I am trying to catch up on house work and related chores over the holidays. I am going through everything deciding to keep or save and what to do with "stuff". It can be difficult to decide what to do with stuff. Sometimes it seems you are being disrespectful or something. I have also been spending my down-time catching up on "Vice Guide to Travel" and David Choe's "Thumbs Up" Episodes on YouTube. Very entertaining. Life without fear or filters. I have an interesting mix of travel lined up for t...
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I am back from my hiking and camping trip on the Appalachian trail in North Georgia. I went solo. They call it hiking, but it is really mountain climbing. When you are on the AT and you see a mountain ahead, you can be pretty sure you will be hiking to the summit. One of the benefits of winter hiking is that you can see the mountains more clearly since the canopy is not obscuring them as much. The area has lots of black bears. I have to admit I thought a little of them. Although, I certainly did not get preoccupied with the thoughts of bears. I slept long and hard. I awoke about 3:00 AM by a large tree falling in the forest. I guess I was supposed to be there to hear it fall. I am sure no other human heard it. It was rainy, and cold about half the time, but absolutely manageable. I did some night hiking as well. At some points, the fog was so thick I had a hard time seeing the trail. It was a little bit extreme and a very good way to spend Christmas.
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