Just sitting here tonight wishing I could be at the bunker enjoying the cool rain rather than being here in Austin with the air conditioning on max. TV is an alternate reality exercise between MSNBC/FNC & CNN. So far Fox is winning because I'm watching a DVR'd show called RED EYE. What a riot. If you can get a twelve year old to set the recording device please do. Topical discussions in a totally irreverent manner. It comes on about 3AM (hence Red Eye) and they have the fox trade mark "legs chair" and a panel of strange people that made the mistake of being in the hall before taping time. Don't take my word for it tape it for yourself.

Syria, Syria, Syria. I think this must be a "shiny thing," to keep our minds off of the real problems we're having  in this country. I am still waiting for answers about Benghazi and how one u-tube could have caused so much trouble. Could it have been about Syria and the CIA. Way beyond me.  What's worse is the IRS looking over my shoulder with the power to stomp me into dust if I say anything about...What do you mean they will be in charge of my health care. They will start a file on me...Oh.oh..The NSA already has a file on me from when I...Oh No. I almost spilled the beans. Dang Nab It. What can a guy say. I'm already on a watch list for believing in the Constitution and a possible terrorist for having a .22 caliber rifle. What, the ATF wants to talk to me. Oh, oh I spilled the beans again.++++



l  Ever feel like you're rolling the rock of "your fair share" up hill while the 49% that contribute zip  sit by the side of the road sipping their free bubble-up and  eating their "Rainbow stew" (thank you Merle Haggard). Well I feel like that guy. For 65 years I have played by the rules, got up every day and went to work-paid my taxes and generally kept my head down. I woke up one morning and found that my own government had called me a terrorist. I supported the TEA party (Taxed Enough Already) ca-ching, I bear watching. I believe in the Constitution of the United States of America, ca-ching, put me on the IRS's list. I call outside my own area code, ca-ching, NSA has a recording of the call in UT.

What if I get tired of pushing that rock? Can I count on my representative government to come to my aid. I don't think so.

What if we all got tired of pushing the rock and just stepped aside and let it roll back down the hill. Who would stop it?

Two-fer

Trying to kill all the birds with just a few stones. The XO's birthday is the 7th so I loaded her into "her" new car and made a road-trip. Spent  the first night at the bunker because with all the rain we wanted to see if there had been any damage. The top half of the road was washed really bad and the driveway had a cut across it a foot deep. Both are fixable when the dry season comes and the weeds die.
Day2: bunker to Santa Fe via Roswell (I thought we might see some of her relatives but just a green alien or two). The Genesis is a joy on the road. Hard to keep the speed down, more on that later, and it's spooky quiet. We stayed at a fancy Hotel ( the one where Gardunos moved) and it was worth every cent. They kicked us out Saturday because we had only reserved one night so we had breakfast at a neat place called Tecolote (wise owl) and wandered around the plaza looking at stuff at a street fair. 
Day 3: We headed for Albuquerque the back way. Down the mountain through Madrid where every bike rider in NM loves to go on Saturday. Didn't count them but there must have been at least 200 Harleys alone.  Had to tie a knot in her seat-belt to keep the XO from showing off her tats. Made ABQ early and roamed the shops for a while before trying a new place called the Church Street Cafe.
Wonderful place on Church street, duh.
Day 4: Tried to waste time so we could arrive at out favorite steak-house in Fabens (East of El Paso) after noon. We tried to catch the balloons at the balloon park. Got there as the crews were packing up, who knew they took off at sun up. Oh well, headed for El Paso and made it there right on time. Shared a steak with all the trimmings and split for the bunker. Made really good time once we got on I 10 (80mph speed limit) and it felt so good the Sheriff had a talk with me just West of the Bunker where the speed limit is 55. Whoops,,,,
Day 5: Just a routine 6 1/2 hour trip back to Austin.

What's Going On?

The most dangerous man, to any government, is the man who is able to think things out for himself without regard to the prevailing superstitions and taboos. Almost inevitably he comes to the conclusion that the government he lives under is dishonest, insane and intolerable, and so, if he is romantic, he tries to change it. And even if he is not romantic personally he is apt to spread discontent among those who are.” – H.L. Mencken

I had a few paragraphs written about the above but I'm not a romantic and I have tried to stay away from political posts so I will just let you think about the dishonest, insane and intolerable government we live under. Note: we live under,  a major change in how I was raised.

Notes from Me

Well I've done it. Ditched the Buick and went over to the dark side, that's right I bought a rice burner. Well really a thousand year egg burner. A Genisis, a Lexus look alike on the inside and a Mercedes under the skin with the Full Monty electronic package just to make it tick. The Buick was faithful for over ten years (I don't buy often) and 150K+ worth of + comfortable travel. Tires and brakes were the only maintenance outside of a plastic water joint which was problematic on Buicks for years. So I figured to upgrade and stay in the Luxury cars. The major upgrade item was the interactive Cruise control system. Dynomite, set it and forget it. I was running up I35 from San Antonio to Austin and had the CC set to 77MPH and as traffic slowed in front of me my CC applied brakes to keep me 138 feet behind the car in front. This was done over and over again as we passed an accident in the ditch. It controlled my speed down to a complete stop and back up to 77 without me having to touch the brake or the gas at all. Really spooky, but I like it. The only problem is the 138 feet is more than enough room for someone to swerve into my lane and slam on their brakes at which time my computer would slam on my brakes to keep the spacing. Neat anyway.

The grand kids are coming down next week for a few days and as usual I'm at a loss of how to keep them entertained. It doesn't help that the weather is a string of 100+ days and a trip to the bunker is out of the question. We may go down to Galveston for the cool and to see what they've done for the Pleasure Pier. It was destroyed in one of our hurricanes and rebuilt and reopened so we shall see. On the way down we will go by NASA to see what they have done for their displays. The GKs have been to the Smithsonian and the sights around DC so this may be wimpy but they have been raised well and should not complain. (too much)

Going, Going, not gone.

No posting for the past couple of months because the bunker was being looked at by a prospective buyer. I had mouthed off in a line at a BBQ during the cowboy poetry gathering about maybe selling it and Dang, someone said, "How much?" Well there I am, on the spot again. I know that my plans for finishing the bunker will never be realized and it's getting harder to make the trip. The odds of finding a buyer are pretty slim so I gave him a price that was low enough for the XO to spin around and say, "What???"
Long story short we agreed to meet the guy and his wife at the bunker in a few weeks. They liked it and could see its potential. We didn't make a deal on the spot but he kept the deal open and we left it there. Weeks later they called asked to see it again as they were traveling to Arizona so I told them where the keys were and waited for them to call back. One week, Two, no call and it occurs to me that I should drive out and see if everything was still there. It was. So we are back where we started and no-harm no-foul.
While we were in the neighborhood we ran down to Study Butte to see an old friend that has a neat mostly off grid place. John Wells is a new pioneer from New York and like a lot of us loves the desert. Spend some time on his blog for a look at how life can be out here. His latest avocation is silversmith. We bought a couple of his bars to help him buy feed for "the boys". Be sure to go back in his blog at least a couple of years to read the story of Benita and Ben.

OK, OK, may as well pay the ransom. Hard to explain why I've been AWOL for the past months. Nothing terrible, just nothing to talk about.  The XO and I have had to to stay close because of her mother. G'Maw is 95 and you can't in your wildest imagination understand what that means unless you have been through it. We really need to make the trip and finish up some things.
I have been watching the weather this week and it looks like the bunker has had a bit of snow. Seems to happen around Christmas every year. John Wells down at Study Butte has pictures on his blog of how it hit him. Take some time and browse his site, he has built a minor empire in just over five years and he is a really nice guy.
Next big project for me is to set posts for a large carport on the West side. The materials have been laying there taunting me for years and its time to "get-er-done". I've got enough deep W aluminum  roofing material to cover the total West side of the bunker out 20 feet. I installed the anchors last summer and all I need to do is raise the posts and install the cover. There are some more small jobs too but they'll have to wait.
We've been working on the bunker  for 10 years now and in actual work days less than a year. Some week ends we could only work one day and at the most three days. But the place is livable and very comfortable and I long for the time I can spend more time there. I'm really amazed how the ten years has worn on me, I have noticed the last couple of years how my body is giving out. Natural I guess, my mind hasn't given up yet but over a glass of wine recently we talked about letting someone else have the place. We laughed when we tried to envision who would want it. It would have to be a major prepper or at least a do it yourself'er.