escape yourself and gravity

The only time John Steinbeck ever said anything I really cared for.  I love Montana.

I know the winters are brutal, and I know I hate winter.  But if I ever manage to become a full-time writer, I am picking up and moving to Montana.  And it doesn't even have to be the resorty Flathead Lake area.  I would be happy living around Missoula or Bozeman or Great Falls or Billings.

( Long details about where we've been and what we've seen so far )

Someday I want to bring my dad out here.  He has never been to Montana, and he would LOVE Glacier and the Little Bighorn.  And I've never yet seen Wounded Knee out here either, and I know Dad would like the Anaconda and Butte history.  Oh well.  For now I'll soak up as much as I can.

Had a good day today. Mom and I drove up to Jasper-Pulaski Fish and Wildlife Area to see the sandhill cranes. At the height of fall migration (which is October) there are something like 30,000 sandhills there. Today there couldn't have been that many, but I'm guessing there were a few thousand. It was incredible how many of them there were, and how wonderfully noisy and gorgeous and awkward yet beautiful they were.

On the way home we stopped quickly at JC Penney, where I bought a pair of brown dress boots (I had JUST BARELY given up on the brown dress boots I've been wearing for at least 5 years), a black wool men's peacoat (because the women's didn't have inside pockets WTF?!), and a pair of Levi's (men's, because those also fit me better) for like $170 total. I'm incredibly happy that Black Friday sales now extend to Saturday. LOL I also got a couple of new nail polish colors because Sally Beauty is right next to Michael's, where Mom and I also stopped.

Of course, I have only gotten about 400 words written so far. You guys, I might not make NaNo this year. *sigh*

So when we were almost home I got a text message from Mom with a picture:

( Ophidiophobes beware )

What may not be immediately apparent in looking at the picture (as it wasn't to me at the time), the garter snake is caught in the netting that we have over the strawberry patch to keep the birds from eating them. And when I say caught, I mean he was caught but good. Two places he'd made it through, then expanded and had the netting dug into his scales. At one of the spots I think it had cut him. So the moment I got home, I had to pull out the pocket knife and use it to cut him free of the netting. Fortunately I'm pretty sure I managed to cut the netting without cutting him. He was very calm the whole time I was handling him, like he realized I was trying to help. The moment he realized he was free, he slithered away...directly into the strawberry patch where my snake-fearing aunt was supposed to pick tonight. I wasn't fast enough to stop him because I didn't want to hurt him worse.

When I got in the door, I discovered that my cat had jumped the screen that usually blocks his room, and then gotten trapped outside his room with food, water, and litter. So there was cat poop on the living room floor. As soon as Dad came into the house, Merlin started rubbing up against him, then bit him savagely and wouldn't let go. So Dad was bruised and bloody, and Merlin got himself a kick. Merlin was pretty unhappy but I gave him quite a talking to about his behavior. It took years, but I finally became the dominant of our little two-animal 'pack'...but Merlin obviously considers Dad to be a lesser pack member. So I spent some time cleaning up that mess, and then devising a gate that he can't jump.

I am exhausted, and it's not bedtime yet. :P

Here in Indiana there are a few signs that spring is incipient. The turkey vultures come back, the robins and killdeer and red-winged blackbirds follow. Skunk cabbage blooms in wetlands and skunks fight (or mate) on the front porch. O.o The sandhill cranes migrate overhead.

I have pictures of that last...

( Largeish pictures behind cut )

This weekend was a blast.

Mom & Dad & I left early Saturday morning and headed down towards Kentucky. Dad asked me to take over driving sometime north of Louisville, which was a mistake for him. *grin* Because I saw a billboard for the Bass Pro Shop, and he wouldn't have stopped there...but I was driving! So we went there, and I got a new pair of hiking boots and a pair of pants that zip off into shorts, which I have been wanting. (I have a pair, actually, but I can only wear the shorts--the trouser legs are too tight and won't fit over hiking boots.

From there we headed down to Perryville, Kentucky, where we took a nice long walk over the battlefield. It was fascinating.

( The Battle of Perryville, Kentucky, and other adventures )

Sunday morning we got up a bit late (I think I got up around 9 and Dad was still in bed) but we headed up through Madison and drove through Clifty Falls State Park, got out and hiked one trail there, just to the observation deck over the Ohio River. Then we drove up to Muskatatuk National Wildlife Preserve, where we did more hiking. I've got to say, this drought is putting a serious cramp in my wetland visits. The water level is so ridiculously low.) We did see some Greater Yellowlegs, though, and lots of Canada Geese. We're definitely going back, because they have river otters and eagles there, as well.

Anyway, from there, we basically headed home. We made a couple of stops on the way, but nothing too exciting.