Missive #99

Read Will Rogers column 88 years ago: July 21, 1935

The only news I have is that it is HOT. We have been over 100°F every day since 15 July which was the hottest one at 106.5 and it has been over 100 15 days out of the 21 in July. This is not right; I came to this higher elevation for a cooler summer than last year. I was in Fredonia, AZ last summer, at 4,671 feet, and thought it was hot there so moved up to 6,360 feet. Alas, Fredonia has been over 100 only 10 days this July although their highest temperature was 110.3°F on 16 July.

Went into Reserve again this morning with the same routine stops. Picked up a case of Kite Hill Plain Unsweetened Almond Milk Yogurt at Jake’s. I thought it was expensive but since they had to special order it I thought that may have been the reason. When I got back online I looked it up and the price was less that what Amazon would have charged me. Still expensive but Jake’s didn’t rip me off.

Ordered some more dried blue berries and tart cherries from Mount Hope Wholesale and after some ordering problems received the order. Since the UPS union is threatening a strike starting on 1 August Mount Hope changed their shipper to FedEx. They were planning on doing that later this year but the threat of a strike prompted them to do it now. This has created some ‘bugs’ in their shipping robot but I got the order and helped them do some ‘bug exterminating’.

My plan to order foods online plus what Jake’s has provided has worked out well. Not perfect but with less deviation from the plan than I thought and NO trips to Springerville, AZ. I thought I would have to made one trip a month but my first trip will be in a couple weeks for a dental appointment. I’ll go to Safeway and pick up a couple of things but could live without doing that.

I saw that same bull elk this morning. This time he was with four cows. I think he is gathering up his harem. With any luck he will be able to fight well enough to keep some of it.

I was reminded of this song from back in the days when I could still hear (1982). It was a hit country song when Hank was still singing mostly country and before he became associated with Monday Night Football and All My Rowdy Friends.

A Country Boy Can Survive by Hank Williams Jr.

The preacher man says it’s the end of time
And the Mississippi River, she’s a-goin’ dry
The interest is up and the stock market’s down
And you only get mugged if you go downtown

[Chorus]

I live back in the woods, you see
My woman and the kids and the dogs and me
I got a shotgun, a rifle and a 4-wheel drive
And a country boy can survive, country folks can survive

[Chorus]

I can plow a field all day long
I can catch catfish from dusk ’til dawn
We make our own whiskey and our own smoke too
Ain’t too many things these old boys can’t do
We grow good ol’ tomatoes and homemade wine
And a country boy can survive, country folks can survive

[Chorus]
Because you can’t starve us out and you can’t make us run
‘Cause we’re them old boys raised on shotguns
We say grace, and we say ma’am
If you ain’t into that, we don’t give a damn