Wolves and Bears

Click on my link and watch some cool video of a wolf teasing a bear and cubs in Glacier National Park. Wolf teasing bears HERE.

I encountered a bear on the Green Circle bike trail a few days ago. I may have even stepped in its scat.

Mixed Up

In what could be the most materialistic period of my life I have on this day acquired a new toy. The friendly UPS man delivered a

Mackie 402-VLZ3 Compact Audio Mixer!

Check out the link. I'll be all mixed up until further notice.

Every increased possession loads us with new weariness.
- John Ruskin

Remember the Lotion

Summer is good. It's full blown beautiful today. Just stepped indoors to refresh myself and plot my strategy for the rest of the afternoon. Some tough choices to make; do I bike, fish, canoe or do all 3? No wonder I'm old and grey, the stress can wear a man down after years of my lifestyle.
Not to mention the poverty and guitar playing with reckless abandon. You gotta be strong sometimes. Has anyone seen my sun tan lotion?

I have a new philosophy. I'm only going to dread one day at a time.
- Charles M. Schulz

Savoring a Moment

A picture perfect morning. Got up early and went on a cycling adventure on the Green Circle Trail here in Stevens Point completing a 23 loop in about 2 hours of leisurely riding. It was really nice. Regrouping at the moment at my favorite Wi Fi hotspot savoring a good cup of coffee and looking forward to the rest of this wonderful day. Fishing is on my mind (isn't it always?) it will be a reality late this afternoon.
See you on the river!

They must often change who would be constant in happiness or wisdom.
Confucious

Distinct

The man who follows the crowd, will usually get no further than the crowd.
The man who walks alone is likley to find himself in places no one has ever seen before.

Creativity in living is not without its attendant difficulties for peculiarity breeds contempt.
And the unfortunate thing about being ahead of your time is that when people finally realize your right, they'll say it was obvious all along. You have two choices in life: You can dissolve into the mainstream; or you can be distinct. To be distinct is to be different. To be different you must strive to be what no one else but you can be.

Alan Ashley Pitt

More great wisdom on a absolutely shining day along the banks of the Wisconsin River.
No flooding here. Fishing and computing simultaneously I am. I rarely bring my computer
on my angling adventures but this a kind spot. Hope to take some pictures of a bull carp
and share them with the world. That is my mission for the next hour this morning.
The pressure is on, gotta work at noon.
My My, I'm feeling so distinctive.
Also so alone. Carpe' Diem!

NBA Champs

The Boston Celtics are awesome!
I'm not too much of a fan of pro basketball but do enjoy watching select games
during the season. Some great playoff games this year. Phat Tony and I watched the Celtics totally kick the L.A. Lakers last last night to claim the NBA title. They did not just win but won by over 40 points in front of the home crowd in Boston.
It was sweet. I can't imagine the party there last night.
Congrats Celtics!

A Little Lovin Please

Love is something you and I must have. We must have it because our spirit feeds upon it. We must have it because without it we become weak and faint. Without it our courage fails.
Without love we can no longer look confidently at the world, we turn inward, and little by little we destroy ourselves.
With it we are creative. With it we march tirelessly. With it, and with it alone, we are able to sacrifice for others.

Chief Dan George

Enough said. Perhaps I should begin practicing what I preach.

P.S. This one goes out to you Joc.

Monk Like

Watched a film over the weekend titled Into Great Silence about the Grande Charteuse monastery in France and the lives of the men of the who live there. Philip Groning a German film maker produced this work. The video was OK, what struck me though is how similar my existence is to the Carthusian monks.

I live like a fucking Monk!! Yikes...

I don't sit around and waste my time praying like they do but spend considerable alone in my chambers reading, writing, philosophizing and playing guitar. A pretty simple existence.
Granted there are some big differences between the monks life and mine such as their celibacy and choice of attire. Sex, drugs and rock n roll can be quite liberating you know. But for the most part we both live a life of "voluntary simplicity" - my world may be less cluttered than theirs. I know I live far closer to the earth and more efficient than the Amish do as an example. My point to all this? None. Just an observation on this Monday afternoon In Back of Beyond.......

The men who really believe in themselves are all in lunatic asylums.
- GK Chesterton

Lost Tribes

I've always been fascinated by the concept of undiscovered people occupying the last wild places on earth. They exist. A tribe was discovered last week in the jungles of Peru that previously had no history with the outside world. A very interesting organization called Survival International
provides a wealth of information about the many uncontacted tribes throughout the world and the efforts to protect these people from the ever present encroachment of world development.
Many of them are living on the run, fleeing invasions of their land by colonists, loggers, oil crews and cattle ranchers. They have often seen their friends and families die at the hands of outsiders, in unreported massacres or epidemics.

Over 100 tribes throughout the world remain uncontacted. Watch a good video HERE.
Well worth a look.

Fishing Monkey

No I'm not the fishing monkey. Read Here all about the "Fishing Monkeys" scientists recently discovered in Indonesia.
I've spied similar species probing the banks of the Wisconsin River. They often use short sticks as tools and seem to have a taste for the local crawfish.

There's a fine line between fishing and just standing on the shore like an idiot.
- Steven Wright

Friday Fun

Friday already? This week flew by. The bold adventure continues. Spending some time this afternoon composing my product reviews for both my new electric guitar and recording interface. See May 21 post. Both will get good grades by this tester - will be blogged soon.

Just downloaded Google Gears, software that lets you use some Google apps such as Doc's and Reader offline. Great features! Thanks Google for making me more productive. Also downloaded a demo of Riffworks a recording/song creation program that looks interesting. Looking forward to playing around with that later. New toys to work with on a rainy day in Wisconsin.

Domestic Bliss

A damp start to the day here in paradise. Warm and wet. If I were a "reel man" I'd be out on the river catching lunch. I'm not. The mosquitoes will just have to go hungry today.
I'm off to the laundry mat , a grand adventure it will be - clean socks are better even In Back of Beyond.
Underwear? Not mandatory.


If people never did silly things, nothing intelligent would ever get done.
- Ludwig Wittgenstein

New Woman's World Records 62.6lb Common Carp

I have a great idea! A carp petting zoo....

The Sauce

Spent my first night camping this spring. It was nice to snore under the big pine by the river and fish into the night. My favorite fishing pole "Old Whiskers" hooked 2 decent Cats making the night even more memorable. In the fury of a night time battle between man and catfish I slipped into the still cold river and got a little wet. It was quite invigorating. As a safety precaution when fishing drunk at night I may start wearing my life jacket and bike helmet. On second thought maybe all the time. Hmmmmmm.......

I'm craving Chinese food but my favorite lunch spot is closed on Monday's. This could be a crisis.
What now? Time to be a man and act decisively. I'm going to eat a Gyro. Meat and onions is all I need. Oh yeah don't forget about the sauce.