Occupation of Independence

Just a few miles from Nevada.  In this area I am curious about the pecking order of casino towns for show biz has-beens.  Perhaps Las Vegas, Laughlin, Mesquite, Wendover is the trajectory of descent.  Where   does Branson MO fit in that list? A few movies have been made about has-beens.  "Sunset Boulevard" is the classic.  But the whole topic is a bit of a "downer" so you can see why it isn't very popular as a theme. And yet, it is part of the Human Condition.  You can look across the pond to the pitiful posturing of European "powers" and have the same sort of thoughts.  Why can't Britain and France just accept being nice countries that used to be great powers?  What was so great about being a great power, and what is so bad about being a has-been? There doesn't seem to be an accepted career path for former great powers.  If only there were.  The Roman Empire did rather well, considering that the Eastern Empire survived in Constant...

It was finally that time in the spring to plan an escape from Arizona.   Remember that success as an RVer is mostly about minimizing your stay in Arizona.  (No insult is intended.) One way to get started right is to fantasize about heading to Tierra del Fuego.  Somewhere near the Magellan Strait.  Looking at this windmill, with its label about "Made in Argentina" got me on track, mentally. It is so counter-intuitive to get north early in the year, but it is so important.  And how nice it would be to get some real optical zoom from a real camera, instead of settling for the offerings of a smartphone: Still in Arizona but it doesn't feel like it. When I head south in October I am thrilled to find arroyos and red cliffs.  You have some pent-up demand at that time of year.  But in spring, after several months of rubble and stickers, it is easy to look at spectacular red cliffs and say, "Yea well, some more rocks.  Just what I needed." The cholla ...

Should I migrate north by a different route than in past springs?  But if you go looking for trouble, you will probably find it.  Isn't that what our mothers and grandmothers told us? There certainly are practical advantages to using a familiar route.  But travel is supposed to be about adventure.   Didn't I just go through a similar experience of looking for a new route a couple summers ago, and then ran into quite a disaster with a wheel bearing on the travel trailer?  All in all I was quite lucky, and left the experience determined to grease the bearings on a more regular basis. Rationally, the new route had nothing to do with the wheel bearing disaster.  But that wasn't how I felt at the time.  It is not going over the top to see my feelings as old-fashioned "religious" guilt. Recall Gilbert Murray's "The Five Stages of Greek Religion," now available for free on archive.org.   I still carry a few paper books around with me.  But...

They have a support group for everything these days.  How about a support group for people who have become addicted to doggie rescue videos on You Tube?   One of the channels belonged to a woman who rescued puppies by bringing them home and bathing them in an attractive, old-fashioned ceramic bowl.  The little dogs were usually filthy of course.  As warm sudsy water dribbled over the little dog and splashed into the bowl, it made a 'slow rain on a hard roof' type noise; then the gentle and melancholic solo-piano music would start.  That got me every time.  Sometimes the grooming videos have the biggest impact.  When non-shedding dogs go forever without a haircut, they become quite a sight.  The dog can barely move, and its hindquarters are filthy.  A good hair-clipper works miracles in a few minutes and it shows up so well on camera.  Sometimes large sections of hair come off the dog all at once, somewhat like the farmer tries to d...