What happened to my tough talk about camping in cooler locations this winter? I was supposed to avoid the hackneyed, overused locations in Arizona. One excuse was the higher propane prices. But the real reason is that I love cool, insect-free weather, from 35F to 65F. And as for the nuisance of camping neighbors, well, maybe I can do a better job of avoiding them.
Here it is, almost Christmas, and I have avoided the generator-ghettos of the Southwest. Yesterday I found myself in a music ghetto. But actually it could have been much worse. Still, I moved. My new location lacks neighbors.
A perfect human being would set their expectations so low that the most moronic neighbors would seem "OK." But I have reluctantly put off moral perfection to my 'next life.' Besides, I did have some control over the situation: I could move.
Seriously, I am not pleased with letting some petty annoyances bother me. And then I show remarkable patience and forbearance with other nuisances. The "Rule of 86" works pretty well with motorheads on the roads and trails: add up the number of seconds motorheads actually bother me on any given day. It might add up to 86 seconds. But there are 86,400 seconds per day. That means I am unbothered 99.9% of the time. Shouldn't I be happy with that?!
Look at all history books I have read in my life. They are clogged with names, dates, and other details that mean nothing to the reader. What if you asked yourself, after reading a history book, "what new perspective have I really gained?" What will I carry away from the book? Has it changed my life in even the tiniest way?
So why continue with reading history books? The answer is without historical context you are completely at the mercy of propaganda being spewed out by the media and politicians.
Besides, one occasionally runs into a history book that is written in a more breezy manner. (I just finished "Locomotion, The Railway Revolution" by Nicholas Faith.) It is delightful to mentally roam over the world and the Ages. You don't feel cloistered like you normally do when reading a book.
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| "Getting away from it all," desert boondocking or "dispersed camping." "Dispersed" means you can open your door without bumping into a neighbor. (from thedyrt.com) |
Comments
I have a difficult time lowering my expectations to the level where moronic neighbors don't irritate me. I gave up on becoming perfect a long time ago and it seems that the older I get the more the morons irritate me.
I dream of finding that place where the temperature is 35 to 65 everyday. Please give a hint where it is when you find it.
35--65 F. That pretty much describes AZ at 1000-2000 ft. of altitude. Maybe you spend too much time in southeastern AZ at 4000 ft.