When in Doubt, Go Higher (or at least more North)

This is my farewell blog from Flagstaff for 5 months. As my friend here, Ed says, I leave this place every year just at the best time. But those other wonderful mountains are calling, the Tetons. My daughter Natasha will move from New York City to spend the summer in my apartment here in Flag. She will get the benefit of Ed's "best time of the year."






My migration North each year is far more cumbersome than the birds that are on the wing for the same destination. The amount of gear/"necessities" that has to me moved up for that amount of time fills the whole inside of the Subaru plus, a large travel bag in/on the roof racks. I bet those Sandhill Cranes do not carry this load.



Last year, Grizzly 399 and 2 of 3 yearling cubs


I am looking forward to seeing Grizzly 399 and her three cubs/offspring again. Friends in Jackson, WY have said she and they are out of their den looking for food. I have been able to get pictures of them the previous two years. Those who have seen them have said two of the offspring are her size now while the other is larger (probably a male). At any rate she will get rid of them this spring and will be ready for mating again.


My next blog will come from the beautiful Rocky mountains. I was asked whether I would change my "masthead" to the Tetons. I will not! I am still "Flagstaff Mountain Man!"


Adios Amigos y Amigas!

Back in Flag!

It was a good trip to California with a lot of family visits and movies. The beach at Carlsbad was nice and there were 5 Little League baseball games to attend to watch my grandsons. I saw some of my friends briefly. What with squeezing in workouts at a gym as well, it was a full week.


My sister Norma and Me



I got to five films during my stay. My daughter, Tania, and sister Marlene suggested I should include movie reviews in my blogs. Since "celluloid" has been a big part of my life I decided that I might try it once in a while. So, here goes . . .


Of the films I saw while in California Smart People was the best. It is a comedy worth seeing with Dennis Quaid playing a professor, Ellen Page (from Juno) his daughter who is a "hard charging" high school republican, Thomas Haydon Church, his bumbling step brother, and Sarah Jessica Parker, a Doctor and former student. The chemistry was good between characters. I found it funny and the acting was very good, especially Church and Page.


Other films were Stop Loss, Forgetting Sarah Marshal, Street Kings, and Horton Hears a Who (with Grandson Torin and Tania). These are listed in descending order of quality. The first, Stop Loss, is excellent and probably very under-rated. It is about what happens to troops who come home from Iraq thinking their enlistment is over. They are made to stay in the armed forces and return to the war zone. Ryan Philippe (his best acting to date) and others do a great job in their roles. The script is wonderfully realistic as well. The last two films are not worth seeing. Kings is an overblown and violent debacle wasting the talent of Forrest Whittaker and Keanu Reeves (the latter has questionable talent to begin with). Even my grandson fell asleep during Horton! Forgetting was OK but nothing special to my way of thinking.


Flagstaff is warm and sunny (lest you forget my weather channel approach). I begin in ernest to pack for my coming five months in Wyoming. The week will be a busy one and my apartment has lists all over the place; don't want to forget anything. It will be nice to get back to work as a ranger, although I do love my winters here.

A Not So Sunny Southern California Day

Good Morning from overcast Northern San Diego County. Although the temp is around 67, it is cloudy outside.

I am between my grandson's little league games at a "Panera Bakery" restaurant. They have free internet access. I was not expecting to have any time but Zac's team beat their opponents 13 to zip which brought into play the 10 run rule after 4 innings. The next game, Cole's, is at 3pm. Since I am staying with my sister, this is how I see my grandsons, at and between games. I did have a lovely dinner with them last evening. It is difficult to see much of them on these visits what with school, baseball practices and games.

My time is winding down here and will depart on Monday morning. It has been a good visit, but I am always anxious to get home to Flagstaff, even if for only a week and a half before departure to Wyoming for 5 months.

California Dream'n

Greetings from "Sunny California," and up until yesterday it has been hotter than hell, 88 at the coast. The pictures here are from the beach in Carlsbad.


As I strolled down the beach my thoughts drifted back about 42 years to the last time I surfed. Time goes by so fast and it doesn't seem like that long ago, just the wink of an eye. The week ahead is one to be filled with daughters, grandsons and siblings. In light of all that thoughts of the beach will fade and soon enough I will be back in the mountains in Flagstaff followed very shortly by the Tetons in Wyoming.

California, or Bust!

I know, I know, it has been a while since that last post on this blog. Wish I could say that it has been a busy time, but that is not the case, maybe it is a form of "Spring fever." At any rate the weather here has been very mild for 6900 feet in elevation, in the high 50s and 60s, but very windy a lot of the time. They are forecasting rain for tomorrow, but did so last weekend and it never came to fruition.


At the end of the week I head over to San Diego County (my old hometown) to visit my "loved ones," that is, my daughter and her family, my sisters, possibly one of my brothers, my friends Paul and Janice, plus that other person who will remain unnamed. This visit is my traditional one before leaving for my job in the Tetons. I will be gone for 5 months. If the past Spring is any indication, a lot of my time in southern Cal will be spent at "Little League" baseball games. There are practices twice a week and at least two games for the older ones and one for Torin, the youngest. I do not know how my daughter does it what with teaching "Special Ed" and having to get my grandsons to all their activities every night of the week, plus games on weekends.


Maybe this "Mountain Man" will sneak in a little beach time while there. It is kind of funny how little the ocean means to me as I have gotten older. When "young" I grew-up needing to be at the beach as much as possible, especially throughout junior and senior high school. It is nice to visit occasionally but now my passion is for the mountains of the west.