I am CuTRis

On December 26, Dave went hiking with me at Rapids Lake in the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge. Dave brought his digital camera, and I showed him one of my favorite places to climb ravines. Dave calls the picture of me wearing the orange hat, "the orange-headed dork-bird." I must admit it isn't my favorite hat, but they are still bow-hunting for deer in this area, and my hat shows up pretty well doesn't it? It was a fabulous day for hiking. Thanks to Dave for the photos.

The Band Christmas Party took place on December 23rd. There weren't a lot of pictures, but here is one of me with my friend and drummer Pete.

It’s the season, here in America, the land of the easily offended, to wish everyone a Happy Holiday. Political Correctness dictates that we stay away from using any particular holiday, for fear of offending someone. Personally, whatever holiday you wish to celebrate is fine with me, and furthermore, you are welcome to wish me a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah, Ramadan, Kwanza, or whatever you can come up with. I promise that I won’t take offense unless you decide for some reason to toss in a blatant insult. So have a wonderful (insert holiday of choice), and a very Happy New Year! May 2006 bring less war, unemployment, crime and meanness. May the New Year find us all with a new spirit of cooperation and understanding. KJC

Friday night, two of my favorite women were trashing one of my favorite T-Shirts!!! I got it when I went to Dodge City, and it is called, "The Sheriff," and it is an action picture of the sheriff jumping off of his horse (that's rearing up) and pointing his gun. Yes, it is totally cool if you are a guy! Let's face it, women aren't always sure what cool is, though they will attempt to convince us guys that we have stupid "cowboy" shirts.

Did you know that those are the key words to the most popular searches right now??? He Who Goes First By Kevin J. Curtis This is the story of a Mongol warrior who lived during Jenghiz Khan’s empire. It is a new look at a frequently misunderstood culture and history. The participants are not bound by ideals of what is good or bad. Like their ancestor the wolf, they do not act out of cruelty or mercy. They live by a natural law, which has been lost on modern society. To judge them in the midst of our politically correct, industrialized world is like trying to convince a caveman of the merits of having a personal computer. Jenghiz Khan was perhaps the most brilliant uneducated man in history. He was a master of human nature. The men who helped him create his empire, like He-Who-Goes-First, were making their lives from the “raw materials” of the times they lived in. The warrior in this story struggles with his spirituality and his role as a soldier. ISBN: 1-4137-4190-8 165 pages, 5.5 x 8....

In the school where I work as a detention monitor, I have noticed that the chess club seems to be a bit too competitive. Several students have been given detentions for chess club altercations. I had no idea that chess club was such a violent place. Could they be playing full contact chess??? Perhaps they forgot that, “the first rule of chess club, is you do not talk about chess club...”

(In plain English...) So yesterdai I got togetha with me band for our weekly jam session. I wrote this song the otha dai, and I played it for the blokes and before you know it we were bouncin’ ideas back ‘n fouth and we played it a cuppla times and it sounds great it does! Me band is supa!

For my friend Mark’s birthday, I got him an authentic Gorock Stick. http://cutris.blogspot.com/2005/10/gorock-stick.html He was always interested in the ways and deeds of Gorock. Many times we had discussed Gorock together and it seemed like a fitting gift. Last Friday while I was with friends, John found out about Mark’s Gorock Stick. I told him that Gorock Sticks must not be decorated, and that they should be found and discarded as needed. The proper use of a Gorock Stick is to test the ground, mud or ice to see if it is safe for passage. It can also be used to support your weight on dangerous slopes and can be used as a weapon. John promised to use the stick only for Gorock sanctioned activities. Saturday when I was hiking the wilds of West Wilkie, I found John his Gorock Stick. I will present it to him in January for his birthday. It will be a fine day for him and we will all be proud that he has joined the ranks of Gorock enthusiasts. It seems that there is a developing Gorock Man...

For the second time in my life, I am dealing with severe underemployment. As a matter-of-fact, I have probably never really been adequately employed. I do have a Liberal Arts degree (gasp) and my major was in English (Ha! Ha! Ha!), but I have had trouble finding a good job with halfway decent pay. My first stint with this was when I finally graduated college with my BA. It had taken a long time to work my way through school. Today it would be nearly impossible, because the University of Minnesota (where I went) has made it hard to go to college part-time. Back when I went, registration order was based on credits earned. Today, part-time students are always last to register for classes. During my first bout of underemployment, I left my job in the nursery/landscape industry when I got my college degree. About that time, a certain George Bush was President and the USA attacked a country called Iraq with a nasty guy named Saddam Hussein in charge. Now years later, the names and places are...

I ended up getting a cold. First it wasn’t bad, and then suddenly, I lost my voice. I actually feel a lot better, but my voice is just starting to make a comeback after almost a week! I hope it’s almost over and I hope I don’t get another one. The problem is that I work at a school around kids. Hopefully my immunity will build up after I am exposed to the little buggers and their germs for awhile.

Once there was a man who had thought he understood what love was. He eventually was hurt so many times that he kept his feelings stowed safely behind a wall in his mind. He was good at such things. He had learned to shield himself from the white noise and all the pain that found him. Then all at once, he found himself in love in a way that he had never felt before. He was uncharacteristically willing to take huge risks and change his life to obtain this wonderful thing. Eventually, it fell apart and he found himself alone, and knowing the true meaning of heartache . His heart hurt so badly that he was wondering if he might die. Finally, with only himself to rely on, he found his way back home to his own land and his own people. He struggled to rebuild his life. He wondered if he could ever again, feel that feeling, that love that he once had. It seemed like it was so far away. How could that ever happen again? Years had passed, and now he remembered how last night he sat near her in th...

I would like to invite George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld and Condoleeza Rice to resign. The American people aren’t buying it anymore.

I did a lot of hiking in the wildlife refuge over the Thanksgiving holiday. I saw some pretty cool things too. One that comes to mind happened yesterday. I was on the undeveloped trail between Long Meadow Lake and the Minnesota River. I noticed a Bald Eagle across the river from me perched in a tree. The snow had been falling steadily and I was developing a nice layer of white over my coat and cap. Suddenly the bird launched itself into the wind. It sailed back around and then pumped its wings and soared off through the falling snow. I’ve seen eagles up close many times before, but it is always a treat to watch them fly. The snow only added to the grandeur. Before I finished my hike, I had also seen an owl, a cormorant, 14 Hooded Mergansers, four deer, a Red-Tailed Hawk, and more. Winter is such a great time to go hiking!

For Thanksgiving this year, I would like to pay tribute to the most American of birds, the Wild Turkey. Benjamin Franklin had wanted the turkey, not the Bald Eagle to be the country’s emblem. This is because the Bald Eagle is a scavenger and a thief, and he thought the turkey to be more “honest.” I see wild turkeys in the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge, where I volunteer as a park ranger. There are quite a few there, even though they are hunted. I enjoy finding their feathers, as they are a unique bird with beautiful plumage. The wild version of the turkey seems much more intelligent than the domestic turkey. More than likely, however, the domestic bird is better tasting. If I am lucky I will be able to see some wild turkeys on my sunrise hike on Thanksgiving morning. Then, later, I will enjoy dining on a roasted bird. So, I salute the turkey. Happy Thanksgiving! http://www.acsu.buffalo.edu/~insrisg/nature/nw98/franklinturkey.html

It hurt so badly but I held it in. When I was finally alone, the pain slowly oozed out, and I screamed to the heavens… why? I knew why. It was the way it had always been. I wondered how I could grieve so… for an animal? I knew why… because my friend had touched my soul. I collapsed in a heap, suddenly weak. Then, later… I found my strength. The hurt slowly ebbed, but the memories remained.

I hadn’t hiked the day before, because it was raining. It was raining again today, only now it was 15 degrees colder and much windier. I was sick of being inside and wanted to go into the woods. I started thinking about Gorock. http://cutris.blogspot.com/2005/10/gorock-stick.html Would Gorock, the prehistoric man who was so skilled with the “Gorock Stick,” have sat inside his dwelling because of rain? No, he would have been out hunting for food. Perhaps, I thought, we should not think about those such as Elliptical Jones, who preferred to sleep on his couch, rather than go out and do something. Sure that one day he did get up and he took his virtually unsinkable ship out. The fact that the ship sank later that day near the Cape of Good Mushrooms is irrelevant. The day may have ended in disaster, but Elliptical Jones had both the skill and motivation to cause that disaster. Would it be so difficult for me to hike for a couple of hours in gale-force winds, rain and 40 degree Fahrenheit t...

Isn't it sad that there are blog-spammers now? I have to delete advertising from the comments section because there are so many pathetic people that want to sell their garbage on my blog!

I would like to take this moment to disassociate myself from the comments of President George W. Bush. Personally, I do not and cannot condone the use of torture to “gain information” about terrorists/terrorism. I am proud to be an American, and I believe in certain fundamentals of human rights. I was raised, believing that my country was above such things as using torture. I believe that these comments by the President are dangerous, embarrassing, and ignorant. KJC

I have had the opportunity over the years, to work with many diverse groups of people. I have learned a lot in these situations. There is one particular thing that I find really bothersome, so I would like to bestow some wisdom (totally free of charge) to some people out there –who apparently don’t know this. If two (or more) people get into a disagreement; that is what it is. It is a disagreement . This occurs throughout life, and indeed, it is a necessary part of living in communities. Here comes the important thing… When such a disagreement occurs, it is not necessarily the case that the individual with the lighter color skin is a racist. In fact, using this skin differentiation to try to win a disagreement could be showing racism by the accuser. Stick to the disagreement. Use logic and facts to calmly support your case. Forget the cop-out strategy, it has been way overused.

We had a band naming party on Saturday night. After the ballots were counted, it was found that more ballots existed than people at the party… Mark... The winning name was Permanent Record. Dave (front) Tony (back) Pete Kevin Mark ("with the band") & Dean (of Shack & Pasture fame) Don't ask... Thanks to Jen for the pictures!

Cutris Announces Candidacy November 5, 2005 unAssociated Press Today, Cutris announced his candidacy in the election for United States President in November of 2008. When asked what he thought he could bring to the country that was currently lacking, he said, “I will try to tell the truth at least 95% of the time.” This would be an increase of 77.31% over the Bush Administration. Cutris was asked about his platform, for which he promptly replied, “I am currently working on the Shack Platform. I hope to have both the platform and my shack built before the election.” A right-wing liberal asked the question about the abortion issue. Cutris responded, “The abortion issue is not a political issue. It should be decided by individuals, their doctors and families.” When asked about the war in Iraq, Cutris fired back. “Why are we still there? They don’t want us there and we didn’t find weapons of mass destruction. We also removed Saddam Hussein from power. It seems the objectives were achieved...

Northwest Airlines, which has filed for bankruptcy, is both cutting its workforce and forcing employees to accept significantly less compensation. NWA owes money to the employee pension fund, Metropolitan Airports Commission, Mesaba Airlines and others. So how come NWA has just added brand new Airbus A330’s to it’s collection of aircraft?

Shack & Pasture Magazine Issue #1, Volume 1 ..................A publication of November 2, 2005 .................Cutris Hill Farms Northern Shack By Kevin J. Curtis I met up with my friend Dean in Grand Marais, Minnesota in Mid-October, for a tour of his shack in the deep woods of northeastern Minnesota. It has long been a dream of mine to live in a shack in my brother’s pasture, thus carrying on a family tradition. http://cutris.blogspot.com/2005/06/story-of-kevins-shack.html Dean’s shack was a good hour past Grand Marais in the arrowhead region. It isn’t finished yet, which only added to the charm in my opinion. When I arrived on Tuesday, it was raining in the northeast of Minnesota. Later that evening it began to snow. By Wednesday morning we had a beautiful white world outside of the shack. The shack was located way off the electrical grid, so power was available only by using a generator. Wood was used for heating in the wood stove. There were numerous innovations at the shac...

Award October 30, 2005 For the second time today, Cutris has won the prestigious, annual Dude of the Week award. This award sponsored by the Women of Today, is given out once each month.

In our world, we are often given one side to the story… whatever the story happens to be. The United States does not use weapons of mass destruction, though we do have them. Furthermore, the 15,000 lb. Daisy Cutter bomb, which destroys everything within a 600-yard radius, is not a weapon of mass destruction. I have recently begun a dialogue with a man from Syria who found me on my blog. He is afraid that the USA will invade his country, because of the allegations that Syria is arming Lebanese terrorists. He had those awful pictures of the abuses at the Abu Ghraib prison. This led me to wonder if the USA is also spreading terror? http://www.nd.edu/~techrev/Archive/Spring2002/a8.html http://www.thememoryhole.org/war/iraqis_tortured/

Yesterday, as I was hiking up a muddy creek in the Wilkie Unit of the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge, I found that I needed to use a “Gorock Stick” to improve my safety. For those of you who may not know what a Gorock Stick is, it was named after a man whom I first wrote about sometime ago, who lived around 5000BC. Mr. Gorock may not have invented the concept of using a stick to poke unstable ground in order to find safe passage, but he did in fact, perfect the art form. In a time when it was important to have the basic skills of hunting, using weapons and poking a stick in the ground to find safe passage, Mr. Gorock was the undisputed expert in the use of what would later be referred to, as the “Gorock Stick.” Some of you may have seen the movie “Nanook of the North,” in which the lead character, Nanook, used his spear to find safe passage across dangerous ice flows. It is likely that Gorock’s stick too, may have doubled as a weapon such as a spear. The stick that I used wa...

A flock of pigs was seen flying over a frozen hell on Sunday... Yes, the Vikings had actually won a game.

One of the e-mails I had yesterday informed me that I didn’t get the job I had wanted. I was down to the last two applicants, and I interviewed twice for it. I could get upset, but it apparently wasn’t the right job, and I’m not going to let it ruin my day.

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The city of Providence (you may remember this battle from previous posts) finally sent my refund for the excess they charged me for the (rip-off) excise tax for my car that I don’t own anymore in a city (Providence) that I don’t live in anymore. Anyone who knows me knows that I don’t give up easily. I outlasted the Providence Tax Assessors office!

I went to my car dealer after my summer trip in July, and the service guy tried to talk me into all kinds of unnecessary repairs. I did decide to go with a transmission flush, since I know the transmissions on most cars are crap. The guy wanted to do a brake inspection, and I negotiated a tire rotation while they had the wheels off. The rotation wasn’t on the invoice, but when I asked, I was told it had been done. I was also told that my brakes would need to be done this fall, because they were down to 20% of original. I called the service guy when I noticed my tires hadn’t been rotated. He said he’d “take care of me” next time I came in. I went in the next morning. He said he couldn’t help me because the mechanic who was supposed to work on my car wasn’t there. I was mad. He told me he couldn’t help me, so I backed out and backed all the way to the front where I went in and asked to speak to a manager. I was explaining to the manager what had happened, when “Andy,” the service guy ran...

This is YELLOW ??? No, it's ORANGE .

"You wouldn't think you were so smart if you had a wasp up your butt!"

Most of the kids in detention think they are really cool and really tough. Some of them know everything. A lot of them are in detention almost daily. One decided that it would be a good idea to threaten me yesterday. He is currently serving a 5-day suspension. No doubt, some of these kids are destined for prison someday. Even if they’ve been in juvenile detention, they have no idea what’s in store for them after age 18. I haven’t seen one of them yet that would last more than half a day in an adult lockup. I really wish that I could help them, but most of them are too stubborn and too proud.

One day an ant was walking down the street when it heard its name, “Philbrashen.” Who could have been looking for a tiny ant? It thought. It looked around with its compound eyes, listened with its auditory senses and felt with its antennas, but there was no one around! Suddenly it heard the sound again, “Philbrashen! Philbrashen! Philbrashen! But again, there was nobody there! Then the tiny ant heard someone say, “Damn these allergies! Philbrashen! Philbrashen!” Suddenly feeling spooked, the little ant ran home.

This is a "sanitized" copy of the letter that I e-mailed to an employer who is insisting that I interview in the morning... Person, Title Person, Title Address RE: SECOND INTERVIEW FOR, ASSISTANT TO THE DIRECTOR OF CURRICULUM I received two phone calls regarding a second interview for the position that I talked with you about last Thursday (10/6/05). Each time I was asked to interview in the morning, and each time I explained that I have a job and I can only interview in the afternoon. The last call did not sound very promising, since I was not given any alternative besides this Thursday morning. I am currently working for ISD ###, and my hours are Monday through Friday, 7:00AM until 1:30PM. I cannot in good conscience take off work to interview for any job. I respect my employer, my coworkers, and the children who I work with. While I am still interested in the job, and I am available most any afternoon (except this Wednesday when I have another second interview), I cannot i...

Within our society that pretends to be politically correct at all cost, it is difficult to address any real problems. I have personally worked with drug addicts, convicts and now I work as a detention monitor with Jr. High School students. The interesting and perhaps sad thing about it is that certain demographic groups are disproportionately represented in all of these areas. In my experience, it has nothing to do with prejudice, and everything to do with the attitude of the individuals. These attitudes seem to be passed from parents to their children. Wanton disregard for rules and almost complete defiance of authority is often ignored by the parents and embraced by the children. More likely, the children learn from the example of their parents. If the school continually sends discipline notices home and the parents ignore them, how will the child know to change? If the child refuses to serve detention and the parent will not intervene, what can the school do? Street Culture seems to...

On my birthday I went hiking at Rapids Lake. I was climbing down a ravine, when I found some clothing and a bone. I looked around a bit, but wasn’t interested in digging. I don’t know what it was all about, but I put it in my ranger report. Otherwise, I seem to be generating a lot of interviews all of a sudden. I have two so far this week and maybe another. There is one job I really would like to get, and I just found out that I have made it to the final two!

I would like to take this moment to send kudos to President George W. Bush. After only five years in office, he has said something that made sense. People should drive less, in order to save gas. Who’d a thought it? It reminds me of President Jimmy Carter, who asked us all to conserve energy back in the 1970’s. Perhaps we should have listened. What happened to change that? Oh yeah… now I remember. It was Reagonomics. That makes sense, because last time the USA financed everything, Ronald Reagan was President. Still, George W. Bush is beating Reagan at this by far. I reckon the deficit will wreck things in this country for a while. I don’t think you can give tax breaks to the wealthy, finance a war and cleanup after a hurricane without breaking the bank. Still, that thing about using less gas is good isn’t it?

It was a beautiful day for a fire drill, and we had one at the Jr. High where I work. The bell rang, we filed out and I held the door as the students “escaped.” Then, all too quickly we were called back inside. I walked out to the fringes and called out for the kids to head inside. That was when I saw it. A small kid, probably a 7th grader, threw a pebble… or whatever it was and I heard the “ping,” as it hit a car in the parking lot. He was busted! I told the kid he was coming to the office with me. He was bummed. Just before we got to the door, I asked him why he was throwing rocks at cars. He mumbled something. Then I asked him, “how about if you get to class and don’t ever do that again? Without a word, he hurried in and up the stairs. I think that those few moments that he thought he was in trouble were befitting of his “crime.” I’m sure that the car has been hit by pebbles following trucks too. KJC

So, while working in detention at the school, sometimes I have to put discipline information on the kids' records. It reminded me of talking to my friend Mark about our “permanent records.” Back in school (I went to Richfield), the teachers used to tell us that something we did (wrong) was going to go on our “permanent record!” How ominous this sounded! Mark and I were wondering where our permanent records are… now… today… We would joke about things like seeing each other’s permanent record being moved by a forklift, or perhaps being pulled by the Budweiser Clydesdales on a wagon. It got pretty funny actually! The truth of the matter, however, is somewhat different. It seems that when I g ot my new job with the school district, my permanent record (from when I was in school), was trucked down to the school district where I am now working. They had to warehouse it in the bus garage, where it accidentally tipped over and crushed three school busses. Mark’s permanent record has to be ...

So I am now working as a detention monitor at a Jr. High School. I told the people who hired me about my experience working with drug addicts and convicts when I was with the county. Now, it seems that the students are talking about the “prison guard” that watches detention. I never told anyone that I was a prison guard…

Beyond the obvious problems with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, there are a few things that I find really bothersome. First, if you want to fix the flooding problem, it isn’t enough to create levees and dikes. The wetlands need to be reestablished. As a volunteer ranger in the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge, I spend lots of time hiking the wetlands and river bottoms. I know that the only reason this wonderful wilderness area isn’t being developed, is because it floods. By allowing that area to continue to exist, the cities aren’t flooded and the byproduct is that habitat is available for the wildlife. Humans arrogantly think that they are so important, that they can destroy the habitat of other animals. What should be remembered is that what injures one often injures all. The destruction of wetlands increases the likelihood of floods. On the topic of arrogant humans, I find it upsetting that people weren’t allowed to take their pets when they evacuated the disaster zone...

I don’t do yoga, but I like how the different poses/exercises are named after animals. I have decided to create a new pose, named in honor of the bird that messed up the kitchen window. It is called, DOWNWARD POOPING GOOSE

After being bombarded by horrific images of the aftermath of hurricane Katrina, I have only a few things to say. First, the fact that after four days, help is so late in arriving makes me think that too many of our resources and personnel are in other countries fighting what has now become, another country’s civil war. Second, I remember as a child when I found out that New Orleans was both near the ocean and below sea level, that this was probably not a good place for a city. See “Atlantis.” Third, after working in a poor, depressed part of town, I know from experience that we can’t expect many of the people to behave in a civilized way, especially in light of the current conditions. Martial law will need to be established. Fourth, had we stayed the course started by President Jimmy Carter, we would not be this dependent on fossil fuels. With gas now at over $3 per gallon, I want to “thank” Ronald Reagan for reversing that course. I can’t believe some people want his face on money! Fi...

September 1, 2005 Sky Drop By Kevin J. Curtis It was early morning, predawn. The engines were already going as Fritz boarded the airplane. He had just emptied his guts on the tarmac not more than two minutes ago. This was his first jump into a battle zone. He had jumped several times before, but never into combat. He sat in the airplane, still feeling nauseous. His stomach was tied into knots as he tried to imagine what was in store for him. He was one of the best of the best. He was army airborne. He had trained for this day, and now, just three days from his nineteenth birthday, he was about to jump into hostile territory on his first mission. There were others like him… first timers. They were all in various states of nervousness, some more than Fritz and some less. The combat veterans were quiet and portrayed a calm that was foreign to the first timers. Inside, each man was dealing with his own mortality as the plane lurched forward and lifted off into the sky. As they rose higher,...

Periodically I wonder about important things like whether there are “pervious” materials. It only makes sense, if we have impervious materials that there must be pervious ones too. This morning it was raining. I had my window open, and though the temperature was comfortable, it was definitely a bit humid. I watched my Beta (fish) “Spaz,” swimming around in his bowl, darting through the roots of his plant. I started to wonder if fish feel humidity? Have you noticed the news lately… unfortunately? Everyday seems to be the most violent day yet in Iraq. The next news story will likely be, oil prices reached a new record high today! Then they will have some really enlightening news about smoking causing cancer, or eating causing obesity. Why don’t they talk about how humidity affects fish? I was reading the Beer News this morning, and it talked about how an official from Belgium cancelled his lunch with an Iranian official, because the Iranian insisted that beer not be served, because it...

I'm fighting with Providence again. They lost my certified letter with the second round of proof that I moved and transferred my vehicle to Minnesota. I've been hung-up on, disconnected, told I'd be called back, and told they didn't know their own fax number... Someone should really do an investigation of this. They are threatening me about taxes on a car I don't own anymore for years I didn't live there. No matter how many times I provide proof, they continue to tax me... I’ve already paid for more than the time I lived there. It is roughly 99.5 cents per day that they charged me for the excise tax to own a car in their city of boarded up buildings, ghetto and crime. ------------------------------------------------------------ Cut to commercial… Picture of that bearded guy from the Christian Children’s Fund… “This is Guido. He is a mobbed-up politician from Providence, Rhode Island. Guido lives in a 19-room house in the affluent section of the city, far from th...

He Who Goes First By Kevin J. Curtis This is the story of a Mongol warrior who lived during Jenghiz Khan’s empire. It is a new look at a frequently misunderstood culture and history. The participants are not bound by ideals of what is good or bad. Like their ancestor the wolf, they do not act out of cruelty or mercy. They live by a natural law, which has been lost on modern society. To judge them in the midst of our politically correct, industrialized world is like trying to convince a caveman of the merits of having a personal computer. Jenghiz Khan was perhaps the most brilliant uneducated man in history. He was a master of human nature. The men who helped him create his empire, like He-Who-Goes-First, were making their lives from the “raw materials” of the times they lived in. The warrior in this story struggles with his spirituality and his role as a soldier. ISBN: 1-4137-4190-8, 165 pages, 5.5 x 8. $16.95 plus $3.00 Shipping & Handling (.50 per additional copy) Phone orders (...

August 17, 2005 Cycle 3, Blue Planet Interstellar Traveler, Unglip Reporting. I have returned to the Blue Planet in search of intelligent life. Last time, my findings were inconclusive. The temperature was lower today, below 17 helo-hectars. The bipedal beings have not changed much in the past rotation around the star. They still drive quad-rolling transport devices, and most of them are still vocalizing into small radio devices that they hold against their auditory canals. It seems that none of them are very good at both driving a quad-rolling transport and using a radio vocalizer at the same time. I would have thought that during the past solar orbit they would have improved their skills. It seems that their lack of intelligence is more so than I had first anticipated. They are still using prehistoric biotoxins to power almost everything. The residue has caused significant damage to the environmental well-being of this planet. Again, the bipedal beings seem to be too ignorant to fig...

It was only a month ago when I went on my road-trip and was paying more for gasoline than ever before. It was averaging about $2.35 per gallon. Today, a month later it is averaging $2.65 per gallon. Yesterday when gas was varying between $2.45 and $2.69 per gallon, I put my car in the garage and took my bicycle for a 20-mile ride through the trails in Fort Snelling State Park. I chose not to drive somewhere to hike. I’m afraid we all need to find ways to use less gas, because the price isn’t going to come down. Our political leadership comes from families who have long made their money from petroleum profits. That could also explain why the Saudis are considered allies of the USA, even though they spawn, grow and fund more terrorists than any other country. Oil, it seems, is the civilized world’s drug of choice. The repercussions of this can be seen in environmental damage, and slowly but surely, the downfall of our economy. The rich can’t see beyond their greed, but the cost of oil ...

Check this site written by me and my friend Dave... http://shirleyink.angelcities.com/robogoat.html

I enjoy making my own beer and wine. Beer it seems is more complicated and I consider it somewhat of an art. Wine, is easy in my opinion… like finger-painting. That said, I am obviously not making wine “the right way,” because I don’t add all of those chemicals and crap. I’m quite sure that I am doing it wrong, though to me personally, I only care about how it tastes a year from now. Wine making for me, usually involves picking the fruit out in the woods. I made a raspberry wine early in July, which is still fermenting. This past Saturday, I picked a bunch of wild grapes along the river. This involved a long bicycle ride on the trails and the lengthy process of removing the stems and sorting out any undesirable things like spiders and bugs. If you are familiar with the small, wild, purple grapes that grow in Minnesota, they are horribly tart. I have found, however, that by adding honey, I can come up with an absolutely delicious wine! After sterilizing, cooking, straining, adding… I fi...

Forward: The state of Rhode Island boasts a Dept. of Motor Vehicles, that is geared to make you wait hours/days, so that you find out that you need to go to yet another place and spend more money before you can return for more hours/days to start the process again. Most Rhode Islanders seem proud of this adversarial system (on any day they don't need to go there). The city of Providence, charges an excise tax on vehicles, above and beyond the tax imposed by the state. This is for the luxury of being able to drive in their city. It should be noted that the City of Providence has ample ghetto, limited street signs, and it is still heavily influenced by the mob. As much as I disliked it there, they are still charging me for a car I no longer own, almost two years after I left the state... Some personal information changed for this posting. ---------------------------------------------------------------- August 9, 2005 Office of the Tax Assessor Providence City Hall 25 Dorrance Street...

My friend Mark (no not that Mark, the other Mark), was recently asked while we were having beers at a local bar, if he was “with the band.” His immediate reply was, “yes, we are with the band!” He mentioned to me, that he was once at a bar and asked someone else if he was “with the band.” The other guy replied, “no.” Mark could not believe this! “Dude!” he said, “ always say that you are with the band!” This, I think, is probably the real definition for the word, “bandwidth.” Either that or it is a way of determining how big of a stage your band needs. KJC

Yesterday I saw a coyote while I was hiking in the Black Dog Preserve. It didn’t appear to have seen me as it trotted across the trail and into the woods. I know they are around, since I see their tracks. I almost never see them though. I know coyotes are not well liked. They are smart and opportunistic. A cat or small dog would make a good meal for them. The fact is, they live almost everywhere in Minnesota; including the cities. Those few times that I have seen one, I consider myself fortunate. http://www.canismajor.com/dog/coyote.html

While I enjoy my hikes in the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge, I must admit that Summer is not my favorite time in the woods. A few days ago I was off-trail, trying to find my way from one trail to the other. Once committed, I kept going though I was sometimes in brush that was over my head. Wearing shorts because of the heat, I was stung so many times by stinging nettles that my legs were bleeding by the time I made it out. Of course, the flies found the blood irresistible. Yesterday, I decided to take a 6 or 7 mile loop around Long Meadow Lake. I was hoping to make it around before the coming rain started. There is an undeveloped trail that usually affords some good wildlife encounters. Last time I had been on it I was “charged” by a baby woodchuck. Eventually on this trek, I can link up to the Bluff Trail which is usually an easier hike, though there is some elevation and yesterday, I found that the recent storms had left fallen trees on the trail. When I started out, I wa...

I am often astounded at the narrow thinking of some people. I was reading the news story that said, Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor has mixed feelings about President George W. Bush's choice of John Roberts to replace her. O'Connor said the federal appeals court judge is "first rate," but she's disappointed that the nominee isn't a woman. Now if the idea is that hiring should be based on who is most qualified for the job, rather than what race or sex a person is, why would a female judge need to be replaced by another female; or why would a minority school superintendent need to be replaced by another minority? Isn’t this illegal and doesn’t it contradict fair hiring practices? Why is some discrimination okay while some is not? Why can’t we hire solely on qualifications? Why does society take a few steps forward, and then a few more backward again? Until things are fair for everybody, it will never be fair. KJC

While I was on my trip recently, I had the opportunity to visit the graves of Sacajawea and Chief Washakie in the Wind River Indian Reservation. The experience gained more significance after returning home. The Chief and I have a connection that I won't get into right now. I will only mention the feathers. While I was doing my project work recently, I had a turkey feather at my desk where I worked. Since it had brought me much joy, I decided to return it to the wild when the projects (and my employment) ended. I hiked into the wildlife refuge where I volunteer and found a spot to set it, in the bark of a tree. On my way back out of the woods, I found a new feather in my path. While visiting the graves in Wind River, I left a large goose feather at Sacajawea's grave and a fine turkey feather on Chief Washakie's grave. These were nice feathers, and though I have a good collection of them, they were so nice that I would like to keep them. I could think of no better thing, howe...

Ten States July 15, 2005 I’ve returned from my road-trip. I’m happy to say that I was able to follow my planned route almost exactly, and I was able to see all of the things that I had wanted to see. July 5, 2005 (Tuesday) I departed at a leisurely 9:30AM. I drove to Brandon, South Dakota, where I got gas and a snack. I arrived in Murdo, SD a little after 4:00PM CDT. I ate at the Star Restaurant and then there was a rather wicked lightening storm late in the afternoon. I watched the movie “Troy” in my room at the Sioux Motel. Then I decided to go get a beer so I went to the Lost Souls Bar, where I met Lyn. After talking to him, we walked over to his brother Mike’s bar, The Rusty Spur; where we hung out with his other brother Jessie. The brothers built the bar themselves, and they did a nice job too. During our conversation, I found out that there were cougars in the area, as Jessie said they were after his horses. 457.5 miles July 6, 2005 (Wednesday) I left just after 8:00AM CDT and fu...